Shadows in the Darkness
by Caskett1960
Summary: Based on the promo for episode 7x14 'Resurrection' and Castle's words to Jerry Tyson. 'Where's Beckett' Assuming that the creepy dynamic duo of Jerry Tyson and Kelly Nieman has taken Beckett, what did they do to her while they had her at their mercy? Rated 'M' just to be on the safe side. And what does Castle do to them once he gets her back?
1. More Questions than Answers

**DISCLAIMERS: 'Castle' is the property of Andrew W. Marlowe and ABC Studios. No copyright infringement is intended. **

**SUMMARY: Based on the promo for episode 7x14 'Resurrection' and Castle's words to Jerry Tyson. 'Where's Beckett?' Assuming that the creepy dynamic duo of Jerry Tyson and Kelly Nieman has taken Beckett, what did they do to her while they had her at their mercy? Rated 'M' just to be on the safe side. And what does Castle do to them once he gets her back?**

**A/N #1: I know this plot twist has been done to death, so please bear with me. The odd number chapters will be in the present while the even numbered chapters will be what happened to Kate at the hands of her tormentors.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 1: Questions without Answers**

"Where were you taken from?"

"Did Dr. Nieman and Mr. Tyson say anything to you?"

"What did Dr. Nieman and Mr. Tyson do to you?"

Kate Beckett just continued sitting in a chair by the window, watching the cold February rain streak the windowsill. She didn't say a word as the questions continued to be pelted at her like so many snowballs. She was hoping that if she ignored them, he'd just go away. Why didn't he understand that she didn't feel like talking? She just wanted to be left alone.

"Are you in pain, Det. Beckett? Because if you are, I can order something."

In answer, Kate just drew her knees tighter to her chest, and kept her eyes on the rain. The falling rain matched her mood at the moment. She didn't know how she'd come to be in this hospital room, but she had no intention of staying. She stared down at the gauze covering her lower arms, not remembering how she'd injured herself. She noticed more gauze on her lower legs. Her memory was fuzzy on so many details. Nothing was making any sense.

Finally, she heard the door of her hospital room opening and closing. She turned from the window and saw that she was finally alone. But she knew that he'd be back. He had been asking her questions over and over for the past 10 hours. And she'd remained silent for just as long. At some point she vaguely remembered Castle being at her bedside, but when she'd opened her eyes, he hadn't been there. So maybe she'd been imagining his presence. She could no longer be sure.

Out in the hallway, Castle was sitting with Ryan and Esposito, waiting for the doctor to come out of Kate's room. He stared down at his knuckles, which were split opened and crusted over with dried blood. Beating the holy hell out of Jerry Tyson had been worth the pain that his hands were in now. He would've killed him if the boys hadn't pulled him off of him. He looked up when the doctor, whose name was Dr. Carson, came out of Kate's room. "How is Kate?" He asked, jumping to his feet.

"She's still not talking about whatever happened to her. I can try again in a few hours, but really, at this point, I think that would be an exercise in futility. Maybe it's because she doesn't know me or it could still be the shock. She does seem more alert than she was the last time I saw her. Maybe she'll be more willing to talk to people who are familiar to her; with whom she feels comfortable and safe."

"Are you saying that we should try to question her?" Ryan asked.

"I would recommend that Mr. Castle see her first. Let him try to guide her through the possibility of an interrogation."

"I can try that," Castle nodded in agreement.

"Let me call the captain and let her know what the plan is," Esposito walked off to use his cell phone to call Capt. Gates, who was upstairs where the prisoners were being held in heavily guarded hospital rooms.

Inside her hospital room, Kate was in the middle of a frantic search for her things. Her plan was to get dressed and get out of here, against medical advice, if that was what she had to do. Her head hurt as well as her arms and legs, but she didn't feel that she was sick enough to have to stay in the hospital. She was yanking drawers open in a frantic search when her door once again opened. She turned in a blind panic only to find Castle standing there. "Kate, what're you doing?"

"Castle!" She ran up to him, throwing her arms around him. "Where are my clothes? I need to get out of here!"

"Kate, calm down. Mother and Alexis are on their way here with fresh clothes for you."

"What's wrong with what I was wearing when I got here? Rick, where are the clothes that I was wearing when I was admitted? And why am I here?"

"Kate, when we found you, your clothes were a tattered mess."

"What do you mean when you found me? Where was I?"

"Kate, what is the last thing that you remember? Dr. Carson said that you wouldn't tell him anything."

"We were looking for Kelly Nieman. Did we talk to Jerry Tyson or was that a dream?"

"Yeah, we had him in interrogation. Him and Nieman both. But somehow or other, they pulled another one of their Houdini acts. Gates and IAB are still trying to figure out how they escaped from police custody again."

"What happened while we were searching for her?"

"Kate, we were hoping that you could tell us."

"What happened to my arms and legs? Rick, what in the hell did they do to me?"

"Kate, we don't know," his voice came out as a choked whisper.

"They drugged me," she walked over and sat on the edge of her bed, Castle right behind her.

"The hospital sent your tox screen to Lanie. She's testing for every possible drug or combination of drugs that Nieman could've given you."

"How long did they have me?"

"Almost 72 hours."

"I couldn't talk to him, Castle. I didn't trust him."

"Dr. Carson?" She nodded. "Do you want me to call Burke?"

"No," she lay down on the bed. "I don't want to talk to anybody. I just want to go home. Get me some clothes, Castle, and get me out of here."

"I'm going to go out in the hall to wait for mother and Alexis. I'll be right back," he leaned over and kissed her temple.

When he stepped out, Capt. Gates had joined Ryan and Esposito. "How is she?" Gates immediately asked.

"She's very confused. I don't know what Nieman gave her, but she doesn't remember anything about her ordeal with them."

"Nothing?" Gates raised her eyebrow.

"No, sir. She remembers that we were looking for Nieman, but that's the last thing that she clearly remembers. Even the interrogation of Tyson is fuzzy. I didn't want to keep questioning her, because she was starting to shut down. She just wants to get dressed and go home."

"Are they going to release her?" Gates asked.

"They're going to have to, because she's going to bolt if they don't."

"I'll tell Dr. Parish to hurry with that drug screen," Gates pulled out her cell phone and walked down the corridor.

"Richard!" Castle looked down the hallway to see his mother and Alexis approaching with a small overnight bag. "How's Katherine?"

"Dad, has she said what happened?"

"Kate's still a little shaken, but hopefully she'll be released within the next few hours. And no, she hasn't said anything about what happened to her. So, please don't ask her a lot of questions about it."

"Richard, what's going on?"

"Mother, everything's fine—"

"Richard, everything is not fine. What did those two _animals_ do to her?" Martha hissed through clenched teeth.

"We don't know. Right now Kate doesn't remember much about her ordeal. That could be due to the drugs she was given. I need to page her doctor to see about getting her discharged."

"Dad, can we go in to see her?" Alexis' eyes were hopeful.

"I think she'd like the company, pumpkin. I'm going to find her doctor. If she asks about me, tell her I'll be with her as soon as I can."

Alexis looked at her grandmother before lightly knocking on the door. After hearing a muffled 'Come in,' from inside, she turned the handle and opened the door. "Kate? Grams and I brought you some clothes. Dad went to find your doctor so that he can start your discharge papers."

"Thank you," Kate smiled before taking the small suitcase from Martha. "I think I'll go and get changed."

Kate went into the small bathroom and reached behind her neck to untie the hospital gown. She gasped in shock when it fell to the floor. Her entire front was covered in mottled black, blue and purple bruises. The bruises extended from her throat to the tops of her thighs. She opened the suitcase and took out her underwear first, slipping into her panties before attempting to put her bra on. She cried out when she tried to clasp it behind her back.

"Kate, are you all right?" Martha called out.

Kate hated feeling helpless. She hated having to ask for help. She also didn't want her mother-in-law and stepdaughter seeing the marks on her. She found herself wondering if Rick had seen them. She startled when she heard a tap on the closed bathroom door. "Kate?" She heard Alexis' voice. "Do you need some help? Kate, please answer me."

"Alexis, I'll be out in a minute," Kate forced her voice to be steady.

Instead of leaving like Kate had expected her to do, Alexis opened the door and stepped inside. Kate jumped a foot in the air, and tried to hold her bra on while trying to shield the rest of her body at the same time. Alexis' eyes widened in shock, but she quickly recovered. "You look like you could use a hand," she offered as she gently turned Kate so that she could fasten the hooks on the back of her bra.

"Thank you," Kate finally managed to say after the young redhead had finished. "Do you know when your dad is coming back?"

"He was going to look for your doctor. Do you want me to go and look for him?"

"Yeah, that would be really great."

"Are you okay with everything else?"

"I think I can manage. Thank you, Alexis."

"No problem," Alexis smiled. "Let me go and find dad."

"Alexis, is everything all right?" Kate could hear Martha ask.

"I'm going to go and find dad," Alexis left the room.

Inside of the bathroom, Kate tugged on the t-shirt that had been packed followed by the pair of jeans. She knew that there was no way she was going to be able to button the button due to the bruises, so she hoped the zipper would keep the pants closed. Lastly she pulled out a thick pair of socks and her favorite pair of sneakers. She sat on the closed toilet lid, pulling on the socks and shoes before finally exiting the bathroom.

"Well, I'm sure being dressed makes you feel a lot better," Martha's voice was bright when she saw Kate walking over to the bed.

"Being home would be even better. Martha, did they find them? Castle said that we talked to Tyson and that he was alive. Did they find them? Is it over?"

"Darling, I think it would be best if Richard answered your questions."

"But I'm asking you. Martha, I'm asking you! Are they dead? And I mean, really dead? Why is everybody keeping the truth from me like I'm a child?"

"Katherine—"

Castle picked that moment to walk into the room with Dr. Carson. "I understand that you feel ready to leave us."

"I want to go home! I want to know what in the hell is going on! I want to know what they did to me! I have bruises all over me!"

"I'm aware of your injuries, Det. Beckett," the doctor spoke in a calm, gentle voice.

Rather than his voice soothing his patient, all it did was serve to grate on her nerves. "Stop talking to me like I'm an imbecile!"

"Can we talk alone for a few minutes?" Dr. Carson looked pointedly at Kate.

Kate's eyes shifted from Martha to Castle and back again. To Castle, it was like watching a pinball. She was highly distrustful and he didn't quite understand why. Castle stepped forward and knelt down in front of her. "Why don't you talk to Dr. Carson for a few minutes? He can explain your condition better than I can. Nobody's going to make you stay if you don't want to. Mother and I will be right outside the door. I swear that I'll come in if you need me. Okay?"

"I'm not staying, Rick," she whispered.

"I know."

Castle stood up and motioned for Martha to follow him out of the room, leaving Kate alone with the strange doctor. He pulled up a chair and sat in front of Kate, pushing the chair back when she moved to the other end of the bed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to crowd your personal space. I introduced myself to you earlier, but I'm not sure if you remember. I'm Dr. Carson. Is it all right if I call you Kate?"

"I want to go home."

"What is the last thing that you remember before you woke up here?"

"I was searching for a murder suspect. Her name is Kelly Nieman. She's a plastic surgeon. Did she take me and do _things_ to me? I have bruises all over my body."

"You are suffering from a concussion, dehydration and exposure. The police and your husband found you in a warehouse where the temperature was around 40 degrees."

"How did I get the bruises?"

"Judging by your broken fingernails, you tried to fight your captors," Kate looked down at her hands, noticing for the first time her badly split and broken fingernails. Her knuckles were also severely bruised. "We believe that you were drugged, but we don't yet know what you were given. Hopefully we'll know in the next 24 to 48 hours."

"How long have I been here?"

"You were brought in at about five o'clock yesterday afternoon. We gave you IV's to rehydrate you, and you started coming around late last night."

"Where are Nieman and Tyson?"

"I think that I'll let Mr. Castle talk to you about that." 

"Please let me go home."

"I'll go and get your paperwork started," he smiled before getting up and leaving the room.

Kate ran a hand through her hair, hating the way that she was feeling right now. She was so confused and anxious. She just wanted to go home and curl up in her bed with Castle by her side. She wanted him to hold her and tell her that everything was going to be okay. She wanted . . . no, she _needed _for someone to tell her what had happened to her during those three days.

"Is it all right for me to come back in?" She smiled at Castle, who was standing in her doorway.

"Castle," she breathed out his name. "Of course it's all right for you to come back in."

He smiled before striding over and settling onto the bed beside her. "You have questions," he looked down at his hands, unconsciously flexing his fingers.

"Castle . . . Rick . . . what happened to your hands?"

"That wasn't exactly where I was planning on starting, but I guess it's as good a place as any. When we busted into the warehouse, Nieman was unconscious in one corner and you were in another. I went to check on you and I heard one of the TAC guys shouting that Tyson was rabbiting. I don't know what came over me, Kate. I jumped up and I ran. I caught up with him somehow and I just tackled him like I was a linebacker for the Giants. I started pounding on him and pounding his head into the concrete. The boys and a couple of the TAC finally got me off of him, but he was pretty fucked up, Kate."

"Where are they now? Are they dead?"

"No," he shook his head. "Nieman took an overdose of ecstasy. They pumped her stomach, but the prognosis isn't good. I haven't heard anything on Tyson. I know he had brain surgery, but that's as much as I know."

"Do you know what they did to me?"

"Not much. From your injuries, we know that you were beaten. But we also know that you fought back. You have defensive wounds on your hands, arms and legs. Kate, they did a rape kit," she gasped, but he held a hand out. "The doctor in the ER was concerned about the bruises on your upper legs and your abdomen. It was negative."

"I hope they both die. Does that make me an awful person?" Her eyes glistened with tears.

"Oh, babe," he slipped an arm around her shoulder as she leaned her head against his chest, her body shaking with sobs. "They did awful things to you. Wishing them dead doesn't make you an awful person. It makes you human."

"I just want to go home, Castle. I want to go home with you and hide."

"I'm right there with you," he kissed the top of her head.

**A/N #2: Like most of my stories, this one is an adventure and shouldn't be rushed. I do think 7x14 and 7x15 are probably going to be the best 'Castle' episodes ever. **

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	2. Rising from the Ashes

**DISCLAIMERS: Oh, if only. But sadly, no.**

**SUMMARY: How did Beckett and Castle stumble across Kelly Nieman and Jerry Tyson? **

**A/N #1: Thank you so much for the overwhelming response to the first chapter of this story. I'm not sure how long this story is going to be, but I plan on another epic adventure. **

**A/N #2: There were a lot of jokes on Twitter Monday night about the fact that Castle now drives a Buick instead of another Mercedes.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 2: Rising from the Ashes**

_Five Days Earlier_

The snow crunched under Rick and Kate's feet as they walked across the cemetery toward Rick's Buick. Kate had just placed flowers on her mothers' gravesite in honor of what would have been Johanna Beckett's 64th birthday. "Thank you for coming with me today," Kate smiled at Castle before taking his hand.

"Always," he smiled back. "So, I was thinking that when we get home, I run you a hot bubble bath, pour us both some wine and spend the evening relaxing."

"I'd love to, except we're meeting my dad for dinner," she leaned against him, causing him to kilter slightly off balance. "I'll take a rain check on the bubble bath and wine."

"You've got it," he turned to press a quick kiss to her lips. "Let's go home."

Two hours later, Kate was in the bedroom getting dressed when Castle's cell phone rang with the tone that signaled that he was getting a forwarded call from his P.I. office. "Richard Castle Investigations," he answered in a professional voice.

"Mr. Castle, a friend of mine recommended that I seek the services of a private investigator. I saw your website and was wondering if you'd take me on as a client," a young woman rattled over the line.

"I'm not in the office right now, but I could see you tomorrow morning at nine o'clock."

"Isn't there any way that you could possibly see me today? I can meet you at your office in an hour. I'm desperate, Mr. Castle."

Castle glanced at his watch and then toward the bedroom where Kate was still getting ready. "Okay, Ms.—"

"Shields. My name is Cynthia Shields."

"Okay, Ms. Shields. I'll meet you in an hour," he hung up before walking into the bedroom where Kate was pinning her hair in front of the mirror. "I have to go to the office."

"Now?" Kate turned toward him. "Rick, we're meeting my dad at 5:30."

"I won't be long. I need to build up my clientele, Kate."

"I know that. Okay," she relented. "I know that this is important to you. Please don't be too late."

"I'll grab my clothes and change there. I won't be too long. I love you," he kissed her cheek.

"I love you, too."

When Castle arrived at his office, there was a young woman sitting on the floor next to his closed and locked door. She appeared to be in her early 20's with long blonde hair. She was cute in a waifish kind of way. "Cynthia Shields?" She stood up and held out her hand for him to shake. "I'm Richard Castle. Come on, let's talk in my office."

Cynthia followed Castle into his office as he flipped on the lights. "A friend of mine had some surgery done to make her look like Lindsay Lohan. I hate my looks. My nose is too skinny and my chin is too pointy—"

"Why are you looking to hire a Private Investigator, Ms. Shields?"

"I told my parents that I want to have surgery. I want to go to the same doctor that my friend Amanda went to. The doctor did an awesome job, but my parents want to have the doctor checked out because her office is in Brighton Beach. It's not like there aren't plastic surgeons in Brighton Beach."

"Your parents want me to run a check on this plastic surgeon?" Castle guessed as Cynthia nodded eagerly. "I guess that makes sense since your parents are going to be paying for the surgery."

"That's exactly what my dad said. How much are you going to charge for your services?"

"I charge an initial fee of 200 dollars as a retainer and then its 300 dollars a day plus expenses after that. I should have some information for you in a day or two. Do you have the name of this surgeon?"

"Dr. Elizabeth Reilly. Here's her website address," Cynthia handed Castle a slip of paper with a web address scrawled on it. "Do you think my parents are just being paranoid?"

"I think your parents are concerned about you and want the best for you. I will run a check and get back to you in the next couple of days."

"Here's the 200 for your retainer," Cynthia handed him four fifty dollar bills. "Thank you so much, Mr. Castle. I'm sorry that I insisted on seeing you tonight, but I really want to get this surgery."

"It's okay. I'll call you tomorrow."

Castle sighed and ran a hand through his hair after the young woman left his office. He'd thought that the life of a private investigator would be a lot more exciting than this. He thought that he'd be doing more than checking into cheating spouses and running background checks for clients. He hated how he'd messed up things in the precinct. He missed working with the boys. But he really missed working with Kate. He knew that the boys had her back, but it didn't stop him from worrying about her.

He looked at his watch and grabbed his clothes before heading for the small bathroom in his office. He didn't want to be late for dinner with Kate and her father.

***CCC***

"How's Rick's new venture as a P.I. coming along?" Jim Beckett asked his daughter.

"He's becoming really disillusioned, but he won't give it up. He had a case recently where he was supposed to check to see if a client's husband was cheating. It turned out the woman was trying to set her husband up and it got her killed by her partner. Castle felt so guilty because the woman was someone he'd gone to school with. I tried to tell him that just because a person cheated off your papers in high school; it doesn't make them a friend."

"Capt. Gates still hasn't been able to get him reinstated at the 12th, I take it."

"No, and she's really tried," Kate smiled. "It's so funny because for so long she couldn't stand Castle. I think she really started changing when we were on the run after I got framed for killing Vulcan Simmons."

"Who was he meeting with today?"

"I'm not sure. I'm sure we'll hear the whole story when he gets here."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang. Jim got up and opened the door to let Rick in. "Hello, Rick. We were just talking about you."

"Hi," Castle walked over and kissed Kate. "I'm sorry I'm late."

"You're not late," Jim told him. "Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes. Would you like some iced tea?"

"That would be great."

Jim went into the kitchen, returning moments later with a glass of iced tea, which he handed to Rick. "Did you sign on a new client?" Jim asked, sitting down in a nearby armchair.

"Yeah," Rick took a swallow of tea. "This girl wants plastic surgery, but her parents want me to check out the surgeon since her offices are in Brighton Beach."

"Well, admittedly Brighton Beach isn't the toniest of places to have a plastic surgery, but you've got to start somewhere, right?" Jim looked at his daughter and son-in-law.

For some reason, alarm bells started ringing in Kate's head along with a sinking feeling in her stomach. It couldn't be, could it? Kelly Nieman had certainly left the state. "Kate?" She looked to her right to find Castle looking at her. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she squeezed his hand. "This client doesn't sound too dangerous. I like the ones where you can stay out of trouble."

"Katie was telling me that your office looks like something you'd find in a 1940's film noir," Jim smiled.

"I love the building," Rick leaned back against the sofa cushions. "It was built in 1935. My office still has the original hardwood floors. I'm just missing a replica of the Maltese Falcon."

"I have a friend who's into all of that Sam Spade stuff. I might be able to get you some things for your office," Jim offered.

"That would be great," Rick brightened up. "Thank you, Jim." 

"It's my pleasure. Now, let's go and eat dinner."

Kate followed Castle into the loft two hours later. "That was fun," he turned to her. "I thought that it would be depressing for some reason, but I had a good time."

"When my dad finally got sober, he and I made a deal. We'd have dinner on her birthday, but we made it a point to celebrate her life, not mourn her death. We'll mourn her death every day, but sometimes it's nice to just celebrate life," Kate walked into his arms.

"Right now, I have another idea for how to celebrate life," he kissed her before reaching around and releasing the pins from Kate's hair.

"Lead the way, Mr. Castle."

Forty-five minutes later, with a naked, sleeping Kate tucked against him, Castle found himself unable to sleep. He decided that he'd get up and begin the background check for his new client. Kate grabbed for him when he moved to get out of bed. "I'm going to get a little bit of work done," he kissed her forehead.

"Don't stay up too long," she mumbled before grabbing his pillow and wrapping her arms around it.

Castle slipped into his boxers before padding into his office, sitting down in his chair, and booting his laptop up. He took the piece of paper Cynthia had given him and typed the website address into his search engine. When the webpage opened, his eyes opened wide in shock and horror. He jumped out of his chair and ran into the bedroom, where he sat on the bed and began shaking Kate awake. "Kate! Kate! You need to wake up!"

"Castle, what the hell?" Kate sat up as the sheet fell to her waist. But one look at Castle's face told her that something was very wrong. He looked like he'd just seen a ghost. "Rick, what's wrong?"

"Kate, you need to come and take a look at this," he took her hand, practically pulling her out of the bed.

"Hold on," she grabbed her robe before allowing herself to be tugged into Castle's office.

She hadn't seen her face in a year, but Kate never forgot a suspect. Especially a suspect as evil as Kelly Nieman. But staring at Castle's laptop, Kate knew that the plastic surgeon hadn't left the New York City area. She had simply changed her name and moved to Brighton Beach.

**A/N #3: I have to address something. This review was removed by me, but this authors' note is addressed to the person who referred to me as 'an inconsiderate asshole.' This is a speculation fic. I'm not basing it on the sneak peek. I asked people in the know who told me that I didn't have to put a 'Spoiler Alert' warning since it's a speculation fic based on the promo for 7x14. I'm not psychic. I don't know what's going to happen in these episodes. If I did, I'd be making a fortune. If you had read the summary in Chapter 1, you would've known this. You had every opportunity to hit your back button if you didn't want to read it. If you want to review my actual story, terrific. I don't appreciate being called names. If you send me another personal attack under the guise of a review, I'll also delete it. But next time I'll also report you to ff dot net. **

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	3. Tunnel Vision

**DISCLAIMERS: Nope, it still hasn't happened.**

**SUMMARY: Castle fears that Kate is starting to spin out of control while she tries to remember what happened to her at the hands of Nieman and Tyson.**

**A/N #1: I want to thank everybody who has followed, reviewed and added this story to their favorites list. I also want to thank all of you for jumping to my defense against that person who from this point on will be a non-entity.**

**A/N #2: I had to work today (Saturday the 7****th****) and when I turned my phone on, Twitter was on fire with what might happen to Kate Monday night. If I add what I think is going to happen, you guys are going to hate me. When I write Chapter 4 next week, I'll let you know if I was right or not.**

**A/N #3: Again, this is a Speculation Fic. Andrew W. Marlowe has not called to say he wants us to be lifelong BFF's. However, some of my speculation is now based on the Sneak Peek, so SPOILER ALERT. **

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 3: Tunnel Vision**

_Present Day_

"Are you ready to blow this joint?" Castle gently teased Kate when the orderly came in with a wheelchair.

"You have no idea how ready," she got up and stepped over to the wheelchair before sitting down in it.

"Mother and Alexis will meet us at home," he said, picking up her bag and following the orderly out of the room to the elevator. "Did you want to stop anywhere on the way home?"

"No," she shook her head. "I just want to go home and crawl into bed. I'm still so tired."

The lab results had yet to come back, but Dr. Carson had told the both of them that it might take several more days for whatever Kate had been given to work its way out of her system. He'd told Kate to sleep when the need overtook her and not to fight it. The orderly pushed the chair into the almost empty elevator and pressed the button for '1' after Castle boarded.

There were two other people on the elevator, both standing at the back, but Castle noticed Kate watching them warily during the 15 second descent into the lobby. He reached down and took her hand, rubbing her knuckles gently to let her know that he was there and that she was okay. She glanced up and gave him a watery smile. The bell dinged, signaling that they had reached their destination. Castle followed the orderly to the front entrance to the hospital and pulled out his wallet. "Can you sit with her for a moment while I give the valet the ticket for my car?"

"Castle, I don't need a babysitter," Kate protested.

"I'll be 30 seconds," he gave her a wave before stepping outside and presenting his claim ticket to one of the valets. He then turned and headed back inside, shedding his jacket and draping it around his wife. "It's chilly out there. You need this more than I do."

"At least it stopped raining," she observed, looking outside at the rain-swept sidewalk. She pulled his jacket more snugly around her, inhaling the scent of it.

"There's our chariot," he said when he saw the valet pull up in front of the hospital in his Buick. "I can take her from here," he turned to the orderly.

"Yes, sir. Have a good day."

Castle wheeled Kate out to the curb and into the passenger seat of the car. He then tipped the valet before walking around to the driver's side and getting in. He looked over at Kate, who was watching everything through the rearview mirror. "Are you comfortable? You can put the seat back if you want to."

"I'm fine, Rick," she looked at him. "I just want to go home."

"We'll be there in about half an hour, give or take."

"Where are my things?"

"Your things?" He pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward home.

"My phone, my gun, my dad's watch, my . . . wedding ring? You know, Castle. My _things._"

"I've got all of your things at the loft."

"Everything?"

"Yeah, honey. Everything." He noticed her lip trembling before two huge tears slowly rolled down her face. "Kate? Do you remember something?"

"No," she wiped at her face. "Were they who we thought they were or was it all a fucking mind game?"

"We still don't know. Kate, I promise that we will tell you as much as we know. But right now, I want you to rest and get your strength back."

"Will you leave some lights on tonight?" Her look was the scared look of a small child. It reminded Castle of Alexis after she'd have nightmares when she was little. Back when he was still trying to figure things out. Much as he was right now with Kate.

"I'll leave all of the lights on if it makes you feel more secure."

Kate didn't say anything further. But she continued to watch everything through the rearview mirror and she scrutinized every vehicle and its occupants that came alongside them at traffic lights. Castle made a mental note to call or text Lanie when they got home to see where she was with the tox screen results.

He noticed her tensing up when he pulled into the parking garage and into his slot next to his mother's car, Alexis' car, and now Kate's, as well. He could hear her breathing increase and he knew that she was launching into a panic attack. He quickly shut off the engine and got out of the car before walking over to help her from the car. Her head was darting in all directions at once. "Kate, it's okay. Let's get on the elevator and head upstairs," he took her hand and led her to the garage. Once inside, he pulled her against him, feeling her shake in terror. "Kate, you're safe here. Let's go upstairs and I'll help you into bed."

He knew that she hated showing this side of herself. She told him once that the PTSD made her feel weak and out of control. Dr. Burke had explained to him that for someone like Kate who was used to being in control. PTSD was a hard pill to swallow. Fortunately Castle, Martha, and Alexis knew what signs to look for and they knew how to help Kate through them. He knew the most important thing was not to make a huge fuss over her. Get her inside of the apartment, do normal, routine things, and talk about it if that's what she wanted to do.

They stepped off of the elevator and walked around the corner to the loft. Castle gave her a smile before he unlocked the door and led her inside. "Did you still want to go and get into bed?" He asked after locking the door behind them.

She walked over to the sofa and sat down in answer to his question. "Katherine, do you need anything?" Martha asked.

"Some water would be great. I'm really thirsty."

"I'll go and get your things," Castle bent down to place a soft kiss on the top of her head.

"Here Kate, I got your favorite fleece blanket from yours' and dad's bed," Alexis offered the velvety soft blanket to Kate.

"Oh, thank you, Alexis," Kate actually smiled for the first time in hours as she shrugged off Rick's jacket and wrapped the fleece around her shoulders.

"I left your gun in the safe in my office, but here's your phone and here's this," he smiled before sliding her wedding ring back on her finger. "Your dad's watch is in the box on the dresser."

She gave him a warm smile before reaching for his face and kissing him. "Sit with me," she moved over so that he got the end of the sofa. She then lay down with her head in his lap.

Rick rested his head against the back of the sofa and softly stroked his fingers through her tangled hair. Alexis straightened the blanket over Kate before sitting down at the other end of the sofa. "Has anybody called?" He asked his daughter.

"No, it's been quiet."

Martha walked over and placed a bottle of water on the table in front of Kate, who was lying across Rick's knees with her eyes wide open. "Richard, Katherine, are either of you hungry? I could order some Chinese or Thai."

"I'm not hungry, mother, but thank you."

"Katherine?"

"I'm sorry," Kate bolted upright, startling all three of the people in the room.

"Kate, it's okay," Martha sat on the edge of the table. "I didn't mean to startle you. I was just asking if you were hungry."

"No. No, I'm not hungry," Kate got up and went toward hers' and Rick's bedroom.

"Dad?" Alexis looked at her father, concern etched in her blue eyes.

"It's okay, sweetie." He got up and walked into their bedroom, where he found Kate stretched out on her side of the bed. He climbed up and spooned himself around her. "Do you want to change into something more comfortable? I doubt those jeans are very comfortable to sleep in."

"What happened just now?"

"What do you mean?" His words were a warm caress against her neck.

"I felt like I spaced out. I'm so tired, Castle. I'm so tired, but I'm afraid to close my eyes. How did you know they had taken me?"

"Kate—"

"Castle, my mind is a complete blank," she rolled over, wincing from the pain in her ribs and stomach. "I don't know what they did to me; I don't know what they said to me. Maybe it's better if I don't remember. But, I have to know how you knew."

"We were working together trying to figure out how they managed to get out of a precinct full of cops without anyone seeing them. You got a text from Lanie saying that she needed to see you ASAP. I made the decision to stay and help the boys and Gates with surveillance videos and traffic cams. Kate, I'm so sorry," his voice choked with emotion.

"Castle, what're you sorry about? I've met Lanie alone plenty of times."

"It wasn't Lanie, Kate. We didn't realize how long you had been gone because we were so busy. Then I looked at my phone and saw that you had been gone for almost three hours. I tried to call you first, but it went straight to voicemail. Then I called Lanie and asked if you were still there. She had no idea what I was talking about. She told me that she never called you. Nieman or Tyson had somehow made it appear that Lanie had called you. We figure they had Lanie's voice the same way they'd gotten Esposito's."

"How did you find out they had me?"

"Later that night, I got a text with a video attachment. It looked like the offices where Nieman had set up her new practice in Brighton Beach. When we busted into the office building, we found where they had initially been holding you, but you were long gone. But I was able to get your things. I think Nieman and Tyson left your wedding ring, your dad's watch, and the other stuff to taunt me; to let me know that they were the ones in charge."

"Have they found out how they escaped?"

"Not yet."

"Rick, did they have inside help?"

"It doesn't look like it. It just looks like they're just really resourceful. You should rest," he brushed her hair back. "I'll get your pajamas."

She sat up and watched him get her pajamas from her dresser drawer, bringing them over to her. "Thank you," she stood up, pressing her lips to his before going into the bathroom and closing the door.

Kate removed her shoes and socks before sitting on the closed toilet lid to remove her jeans. Finally she tugged her shirt over her head and reached around to unhook her bra. She put on the satiny soft pajamas that had been a Christmas present from Martha. She had to admit that she felt much better in the more comfortable clothes. She folded her clothes and left the bathroom. She smiled when she saw Castle sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for her. "Do you want me to stay with you until you go to sleep?"

"Yeah," she came over and sat beside him. "If I'm still asleep when it gets dark, will you turn the lights on?"

"As many as you want," he pulled her into the warmth of his body, feeling her arms come around his waist. "Come on, let's get some sleep."

They'd spent every night since that first one spooned together. Today was no different. The only difference was Kate's restlessness. She was clearly battling some demon that only she could see. Castle continued holding her while she kicked, thrashed, and occasionally cried out in her sleep. He was holding her, whispering soothing words in her hair when he heard a light knock on his door. He rolled over to find Alexis standing in the doorway, holding his cell phone. "Dad, its Lanie. You left your phone in the living room."

"Thanks, sweetie," he got up and took his phone from Alexis before going into his office. "Hi, Lanie."

"Hi, Castle. How's Kate?"

"She's sleeping right now, but she's been fighting in her sleep since she closed her eyes. Please tell me that you have the results of the tox screen."

"I've got some of the results. The rest is going to take some time. Kate has high levels of Ambien, Klonopin, Scopolamine and Ecstasy in her system. Rick, with the amounts present, I'm surprised that Kate even remembers her own name."

"Lanie, will she ever remember what happened to her?"

"I don't know. With the levels that were in her blood, I'm thinking that Nieman kept Kate doped up enough to be controllable while Tyson did god only knows what to her. But we may never know what was done to her. I've already called Gates and the boys with the results. So, you might be getting a call from one of them."

"Thanks, Lanie."

"You're welcome, sweetie. Let me know if Kate needs anything."

"I will," he ended the call and walked into their bedroom where Kate was lying on her side, her eyes boring into his. "I thought you were sleeping."

"Who was on the phone?" She asked, watching him get into bed next to her.

"Lanie. She got some of your tox screen results back."

"And?"

"Ambien, Klonopin, Scopolamine, and Ecstasy."

"That would explain why I feel like I'm losing my mind. Castle, what did Dr. Carson say to you before he released me?"

"He gave me instructions on how to change the gauze on your arms and legs."

"You're a terrible liar," she smirked at him.

"He said that it could be as much as 72 hours or more before all of the drugs flush their way out of your system. He said that you're going to feel a lot worse before you start feeling better."

"You're not going anywhere, are you?"

"No, I'm afraid that you're stuck with me," he wrapped his arms around her back.

"Good," she draped her leg over his hip, settling against his chest.

Rick's fingers traced light patterns on her back as she snuggled tighter into him, her breathing finally evening out. Feeling that she was finally soundly sleeping, he closed his eyes and slept, as well.

_The bare bulb on the ceiling was casting crazy shadows on the walls. She was hypnotized by the way that it swayed. But she couldn't move if she wanted to. It felt like her limbs were paralyzed. She couldn't move; she couldn't scream. She couldn't call for help. There was no help. _

_She'd left the precinct. Why had she left the precinct? She no longer remembered. Was she going home? Had they caught a case? The bare bulb hanging from the ceiling was truly mesmerizing. Kate couldn't take her eyes off of it. But all too soon, she heard that voice again. "Fuck, you stupid bitch. You've turned her into a fucking zombie."_

"_She can hear you, she just can't respond. I thought that's what you wanted."_

"_Det. Beckett," the smirking face of Jerry Tyson came into view. "Or can I call you Kate now? He shouldn't have challenged me, Kate. He shouldn't have taunted me. He was supposed to be dead. I had people all ready to take care of him when he got to the Tombs that day. I've seen the two of you together. Even after he shot me off of that bridge, I came back. I've seen you. I've heard you. And now your death is going to be on his conscience."_

_That was when she heard the now familiar whir of a capacitor coming to life. Her body jolted when she felt the electricity surge through her body. "Enough," she heard Nieman's voice. "You don't want to kill her, yet."_

"It's too dark!" Castle's heart pounded when he heard Kate screaming. He reached for her, only to find her side of the bed empty. "It's too dark! Turn the lights on! Turn the lights on!"

"Kate!" Castle found Kate huddled in the corner of their bedroom, attempting to scoot back further, but she was as far as she could go. "Kate, wake up. You're dreaming."

"Dad!"

"Richard!"

He turned to find his mother and Alexis standing at the foot of their bed. "It's okay. I've got this. Turn some lights on." Once they left, he turned his attention back to Kate, who was shaking, her hair hanging in her face. "Kate, it's okay. You were just dreaming."

"You told me you'd turn lights on," she accused him.

"I'm sorry. I fell asleep. Mother and Alexis turned the lights on. You're safe. Let me help you up," he stood up and held a hand out to her. She slowly got to her feet and took his hand. Her pajamas were stuck to her with sweat.

"There was a light hanging from the ceiling."

"Yeah, there was one in the room where we found you."

"I couldn't move. I couldn't scream. But I kept watching this light."

"Do you remember anything else?"

"I'm not sure any of that was real. I just don't like the dark."

"Do you want to take a shower? I can get you some fresh clothes and then change your dressings."

"I'll change my dressings."

"Kate—"

"I don't want you seeing me."

"Kate, I was the one who found you. I've already seen you."

"I couldn't fight him. I couldn't fight either one of them," tears began falling down her face.

"I know."

"Did they . . . did they burn me?"

"The doctor in the ER said the marks on your arms and legs looked like electrical burns. He said they should heal."

"You'll leave the lights on?"

"We'll leave the lights on."

"All of them?"

"All of them," he answered her.

"Am I crazy?"

"No, you're not crazy," he took her hands in his wrapping his fingers around hers. "You were traumatized, probably tortured, but you're not crazy."

"I love you," she reached up, tracing his jaw with her fingers. "I know that I don't remember, but I'm sure that you're the only thing that I thought of while they had me."

"I was so scared, Kate. We didn't have a clue as to where they'd taken you. I knew what they were capable of, and I don't even want to talk about what was going through my mind."

"I feel like I'm losing control. Maybe it's the drugs that she gave me; maybe it's a manifestation of my PTSD."

"It's okay to be vulnerable."

"I know. Will you take a shower with me? I'm not ready to do—"

"I'll take a shower with you. Let me go and get some plastic wrap from the kitchen for your hands and feet."

He left the bedroom for the kitchen where he found Alexis. "Dad, is Kate all right?"

"Yeah, sweetie. She was just having a nightmare. Listen, for the time being, once it starts getting dark, we need to turn the lights on. The darkness freaks her out a little bit. Anyway, I'm going to take a shower with her and then I'll see if I can get her to go back to sleep."

"Richard, are you sure showering together is a good idea?"

"Mother, it's not sexual. Kate asked me to shower with her."

Kate was sitting on the edge of the tub when Castle re-entered the bathroom with a roll of plastic wrap. "Did I tell you about the time I broke my wrist when I was 11?" She asked as he started to wrap the plastic around her wrists. He smiled up at her, so she continued. "I was rollerblading, showing off for Sean McKinney and I fell. My mom would wrap my cast in plastic wrap before I took a bath."

"What happened to Sean?" He smirked.

"He ended up being a total jerk. Rick?"

"Hmm?" He hummed when he finished wrapping he injured limbs.

"You're sure that Tyson didn't . . . he didn't—"

"He didn't assault you, Kate."

Once he was done, she stood up and slipped out of her clothes while he did the same. He didn't comment on her bruises, but he didn't have to. His face told Kate all she needed to know. "I'm alive, Rick. That's what matters," she touched his face.

The hot water of the shower felt wonderful. Being with Rick felt even better. This was the first shower she could remember taking with him that hadn't turned sexual, but it was exactly what she needed. When they got out, he helped her dry before handing her one of his Super Heroes t-shirt. She smiled when she felt the Incredible Hulk surround her with Rick's scent. He stepped into a pair of boxers before pulling the Green Lantern over his own head.

Once they were back in bed, he wrapped himself around her, whispering nonsense into her hair and stroking her arms until she fell once again into a deep sleep. As he closed his eyes and went to sleep, he hoped that this time Kate would find some peace in her slumber.

**A/N #4: I don't think I've referred to 'Castle' as 'Rick' so many times in one chapter in my life. But, I've noticed that when Kate's feeling more vulnerable, she tends to call him Rick instead of Castle. **

**A/N #5: And I'm pretty sure that combination of drugs would probably kill Kate, so I don't need that pointed out to me. **

**A/N #6: I want to give a shout out to my new FB friend Johanne, who like me is a fan of the 1970's TV show 'The Rookies.' She also thinks that Kate and Castle are like Mike and Jill Danko. There are clips on YouTube, if any of you want to find out what we're talking about.**

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	4. Let the Spinning Wheel Spin

**DISCLAIMERS: I don't anything that you would recognize.**

**SUMMARY: Kate and Castle begin investigating the return of Dr. Kelly Nieman, only to be dragged into a new round of mind games by the plastic surgeon.**

**A/N #1: The response to this story has been phenomenal. I want to thank everybody.**

**A/N #2: Tonight is the night we've all been waiting for. I'm nervous, scared, and excited all at the same time.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 4: Let the Spinning Wheel Spin**

_Four days earlier_

The building housing the offices of Dr. Elizabeth Reilly was a nondescript brownstone in the middle of a block filled with other nondescript brownstones. Kate made sure that her team was all wearing their Kevlar when they entered the office behind some officers from the Brighton Beach Police Department.

The receptionist looked up from her desk in horror when the room suddenly filled with cops with their guns drawn. "May I help you, officers?"

"Det. Beckett, NYPD. I'm looking for Dr. Elizabeth Reilly."

"The doctor is with a patient. I'll call her for you," the young woman picked up the phone and punched a couple of numbers. "Dr. Reilly, the police are out front. They want to talk to you. Thank you," she hung up. "She'll be right out."

A few minutes later, the door leading to the back offices opened and a tall woman with shoulder length red hair walked out. Kate found it unbelievable that Kelly Nieman hadn't even attempted to change her looks. Did she think that they wouldn't find her? "I'm Dr. Reilly," she looked at the roomful of police. "Is there something that I can help you with?"

"Drop the act," Kate told her. "Your real name is Kelly Nieman."

"Officer, I don't know what this is about, but I'm Dr. Elizabeth Reilly. I've been practicing at this same location for seven years. I don't know who this Kelly Nieman is, but she's not I."

"Then, would you mind coming down to the 12th Precinct in Manhattan to answer a few questions?"

"Voluntarily or in handcuffs?" The doctor asked in a snarky tone.

"I'd prefer voluntarily, but I'll pull out my handcuffs if I have to."

"Kasey, cancel my appointments for the rest of the day. And make sure that Ms. Chase gets a follow-up for next week."

"Yes, Doctor."

Gates looked up from her desk an hour later when Kate and her team stepped off of the elevator with Kelly Nieman walking between them. "Detective Beckett?" She called out from her office doorway.

"Take her to Interrogation One," Kate told Esposito, who nodded as he and Ryan walked off with their suspect.

"Did she offer any resistance?" Gates asked.

"No, but this is complicated, sir."

"Complicated in what way? Kelly Nieman is the prime suspect in two murders, not to mention the theft of NYPD and state prison records."

"Sir, she's also claiming not to be Dr. Kelly Nieman. She is quite insistent that she's Dr. Elizabeth Reilly. She says that she's been in practice at that same office in Brighton Beach for the past seven years. Sir, we have no way to confirm or deny her identity. When Tyson's records disappeared, so did hers. We have no fingerprints for her on file."

"Talk to her, Detective. Get her to slip up somehow."

"Yes, sir. Sir, I know that you've been trying to get Castle back into the precinct, but I could really use his help with this. He knows the 3XK case better than any of us. He's also good at reading people."

"Let me make some calls, Detective. I'll get him back here if I have to do it on the sly."

Kate was about to say something about her 'by the book' captain not being so 'by the book,' but she thought better of it. Instead she went into the interrogation room where Dr. Elizabeth Reilly, Kelly Nieman, or whoever she really was, was sitting across from Esposito, who was balefully glaring at her. Kate sat down and turned on the recording equipment before looking at her suspect. "Dr. Reilly, have you been advised of your rights?"

"I have."

"I'm Det. Kate Beckett, Badge Number 41319," Kate spoke into the microphone on the table. "Today is Thursday, February 5, 2015. Dr. Reilly, are you sure that we've never met before?"

"Detective, I make my living out of faces. Believe me, if I had ever come across someone as beautiful as you, I'd remember."

"So, you don't remember Daniel Santos? Because you made his face to look like me before you had him murdered," Esposito's voice was an angry growl. "How about Pam Hodges? You made her look like my ex-girlfriend."

"I take it that this Pam Hodges was also murdered? Detective—"

"Esposito, but you already know that, you sick, twisted freak."

"Esposito, calm down or I'm going to have you removed," Kate warned him under her breath. "This is Dr. Kelly Nieman," Kate pushed a photograph in front of the doctor. "Are you sure that you've never seen her before?"

"Beckett, can I talk to you for a minute?" Esposito whispered. _"Now?"_

"Excuse us for a moment, Dr. Reilly?" Kate stood up and left the room with Esposito on her heels.

"What in the hell are you doing?" Espo snarled once they walked down the hall. "You know and I know that she's Kelly Nieman. Why are you treating her like she's just another suspect?"

"Espo, we have no proof that she's not who she says she is."

"You're kidding, right? Are we even seeing the same person sitting across from us at the table? She's Kelly Nieman, Beckett."

"Maybe you should sit this one out."

"Yeah, maybe I should," he agreed.

"Since you're going to sit this one out, maybe you could run a check on Dr. Elizabeth Reilly using the information she gave us."

"On it," he turned and headed back to the bullpen.

Moments later, Kate re-entered the interrogation room and once again took her seat across from the plastic surgeon, who regarded her with cool blue eyes. "I apologize for the interruption," Kate said. "Have you ever seen this woman before?" She asked, shoving the photo in front of Dr. Reilly.

"I'm sorry, but I haven't. I have to admit that the resemblance is uncanny, but then again, they do say that everybody has a twin somewhere in the world. I suppose that this could be mine."

"Dr. Reilly, don't you find it highly coincidental that both you and this woman are both plastic surgeons?"

"Well, there are a lot of plastic surgeons in practice. Where did you say that this woman practiced?"

"I didn't say," Kate sat back in her chair. "Have you ever heard of a man by the name of Jerry Tyson?"

"I seem to recall reading that a man by that name was being sought by the police in connection with a string of homicides. But I don't personally have any knowledge of him. You know, Det. Beckett, you have truly lovely cheekbones. Has anyone ever told you that?"

"We're not here to talk about me, Dr. Reilly. Have you lived anywhere else besides Brighton Beach?"

"Well, I went to Colombia, both University and Medical School, but I'm sure that you already have Det. Esposito checking out my life history since he didn't come back in here with you. Is he that hostile with everybody that he talks to?"

"Only with those he feels murdered lookalikes of him and the people that he cares about."

"Det. Beckett, you're more than welcome to run my fingerprints through your database. When they come up as belonging to Elizabeth Ann Reilly, D.O.B. 5/17/77, you'll realize that this is all a silly misunderstanding. A case of mistaken identity, if you will. Now, I know my rights and I know that unless you charge me with something, I'm not under any obligation to stay and answer any more of your questions. Am I free to go?"

"Yes, you're free to go," Kate switched off the recorder as she watched the doctor get to her feet and start walking toward the door. "Dr. Reilly?"

"Yes?"

"Are you planning on taking any trips?"

"I'm not going anywhere, Detective. Have a good day."

Kate walked out of the interrogation room and into the bullpen where she saw the expectant faces of Ryan and Esposito. "We saw Nieman leave. What gives with that?" Esposito asked.

"Espo, until we find out if she is Nieman, I have nothing to hold her on. Don't worry; she's too narcissistic to leave New York. To her, this is just a game."

"Det. Beckett?" Capt. Gates called from her office doorway. "A word, please?"

"Let me know what you get on Elizabeth Reilly's background check," Kate turned and went into Capt. Gates office, closing the door behind her.

"I just got off of the phone with the D.A. I explained to him the situation with Kelly Nieman or Elizabeth Reilly or whoever she is. I told him that Mr. Castle has a long standing history with this case. He has reluctantly agreed to allow Mr. Castle to come back to help with this case only."

"Thank you, sir."

"Don't be so quick to thank me, Detective. This isn't a permanent return."

"I know, sir, but thank you for putting in a good word for Castle. I know that probably wasn't an easy thing to do."

"Two years ago, you would be right. But, your husband has grown on me over the past year or so. Not always in a good way, but I can now sometimes appreciate some of his insights."

"He'll be glad to hear that."

"Beckett, if you tell him, I'll deny it," Gates gave Kate a sharp look over her glasses.

"So noted, sir."

***CCC***

Castle was in the kitchen, preparing vegetables for a stir fry. He glanced at the clock, wishing for Kate to walk through the front door. He knew that she was going to meet with Elizabeth Reilly, although they both knew that she was really Kelly Nieman, the possible protégé or partner of Jerry Tyson. He'd tried to call her earlier, but she'd told him that she couldn't talk. She told him she'd talk to him when she got home.

He heard the sound of Kate's key in the lock and he wiped his hands on his pants before rushing to the door to meet her. Kate gasped in shocked surprise when he immediately enfolded her into his strong embrace. "Hey," she wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling him lift her off of the floor. "What's this all about? For the record, I'm glad to see you, too."

"I was just so worried about you. I knew that you were meeting that psychotic woman and it scared me not being able to be your partner."

"Castle, I was fine," she palmed his face in her hands. "I had the boys and the Brighton Beach police with me."

"Was it her?" He took her hand and led her into the kitchen where he poured her a glass of wine.

"Castle, I've never been so confused in my life. In my gut, I know that it's Kelly Nieman, but right now, we can't prove it. But I have some good news," she smiled at him.

"What's that?" He came over and sat beside her at the counter.

"Capt. Gates talked to the D.A. and he has agreed to let you come back to consult on this case."

"I'm back in?" He was incredulous with joy.

"Castle, it's just for this one case."

"Just one case that can lead to a permanent return. I'll be suave, I'll be charming, I'll make that D.A. see just what an asset I am to the NYPD. You'll see," he kissed her on the cheek before returning to the kitchen.

"So, Mr. Suave and Charming, do you need help with dinner?"

"I would love help with dinner."

Later that night, Kate was nestling against Castle's shoulder while he wrote another adventure for Nikki and Rook. "Hey, you promised me you wouldn't use any more of our sexual exploits as fodder for Nikki and Rook," she nudged him.

"But I liked using my desk," he grinned.

"Which one? The one here or the one in your P.I. office?" She nipped his ear lobe.

"Both," he turned to give her a quick peck on the lips. "And what are you doing reading over my shoulder?"

"I'm not reading over your shoulder. I'm reading while you write."

"That's seriously going to be your defense?"

Kate was about to say something in reply when her cell phone rang. She groaned seeing that it was the precinct. "Beckett," she answered.

"Beckett, we heard that Castle's consulting with this Nieman/Reilly thing," Karpowski's voice came over the line.

"Yeah, he is," Kate glanced at Castle, who had closed the lid on his laptop.

"We've got a body and Dr. Parish thinks it might be the work of the Triple Killer."

"Where?" Kate grabbed a pad and pen from her nightstand drawer. "Okay, we'll be there in 20. Come on, Castle. We've got a body."

It was lightly misting a cold rain when Kate pulled up in her Crown Vic 20 minutes later. She got out of the car with Castle right behind her, just like old times. "Lanie, what do we have?" Kate asked.

"Blonde, early 20's, no id, but C.O.D. is strangulation with a braided cord."

"Oh my god," they heard Castle gasp.

"Castle, what is it? Do you know her?" Kate turned to her husband.

"Yeah, this is Cynthia Shields. She's the girl I met in my office yesterday. She's the one whose parents wanted me to do the check on Dr. Reilly."

**A/N #3: I wasn't sure I was going to survive 'Resurrection' and I'm pretty sure my former Unmuse's hand didn't. **

**A/N #4: My question wasn't answered, but from the look Beckett gave Rick in the episode, I think she is pregnant. However, I think the pregnancy is going to end in tragedy. I really hope that I'm wrong. **

**A/N #5: Jerry Tyson will be making his first appearance in Chapter 6.**

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	5. A Rough Time

**DISCLAIMERS: No, still not mine.**

**SUMMARY: Kate becomes ill from the drugs in her system and more terrifying memories start to surface.**

**A/N #1: There will be speculation in this chapter based on 7x15. So, to be safe and to prevent nasty reviews, SPOILER ALERT.**

**A/N #2: It is my belief that Nieman and Tyson were holding Castle captive in Costa Rica during those two months. Clue #1: Castle had Dengue Fever at some point, which Lanie told Kate could only have been contracted in a tropical environment (reference: 7x1 'Driven'). Clue #2: Kelly Nieman had a plastic surgery clinic in Costa Rica (reference: 7x14 'Resurrection.')**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 5: A Rough Time**

_Present Day_

Alexis heard the sounds when she was coming downstairs to make coffee before heading off to class. It was the sound of retching coming from the main bathroom. The young woman walked over to the closed bathroom door and lightly knocked on it. "Kate? Are you in here?" All she heard in response was a strangled groan. "Kate, I'm going to go and get my dad."

"Alexis, don't," Kate finally managed to say.

Alexis was torn between going to get her dad and going into the bathroom to see if Kate needed help. Her desire to help Kate won out, so she tentatively opened the bathroom door, stunned to see Kate curled up in a tight ball beside the toilet. "Kate, are you all right? How did you end up in here?"

"I couldn't sleep. I didn't want to wake your dad up. I was listening to music on my headphones and I just got so sick. That was about two hours ago, I guess. I've been in here ever since."

"Kate, at least let me move you. This floor is freezing."

"No, Alexis. Everything hurts. It hurts to move. The floor is cool."

"That's it," Alexis jumped to her feet. "I'm getting dad."

"Alexis, no," Kate tried to sit up, but another wave of nausea had her throwing her head into the toilet bowl instead.

Castle was sound asleep when he felt someone shoving on his shoulders, shaking him back and forth. He opened his eyes to find the scared blue eyes of his daughter standing over him. He looked to his left and saw Kate's side of the bed was empty. "Alexis, what's wrong?" He threw his legs over the side of the bed. "Is it Kate?"

"She's in the front bathroom, dad. She's horribly sick, but she won't let me move her."

Castle grabbed his bathrobe and followed Alexis through his office and the living room into the front bathroom, where Kate was once again heaving into the toilet. "Oh, Kate," Castle rushed in and knelt down beside her, holding her now sticky hair back as she continued to heave violently. "Kate, let me take you back to the hospital."

"No," she shook her head, settling back on her heels. "Call Lanie, Castle."

"Kate—"

"Castle, I don't want to go back to the hospital. Lanie will know what to do. Just tell her what's going on. She'll know what I need. Please, Rick?"

"Alexis, stay with her," he ordered as he got up and went to the phone. He was dialing Lanie's number when Martha came down the stairs. "Mother, Alexis is in the bathroom with Kate. She's throwing up uncontrollably, but she won't let me take her back to the hospital. She wants me to call Lanie."

"I'll help Alexis. Call Lanie for now. But if Katherine gets worse, I'll make her understand that you're taking her back to the hospital."

"Thank you, mother."

Martha went into the bathroom, where Alexis was sitting on the floor next to Kate, who was once again curled into a tight ball, her eyes closed tightly. Martha grabbed a hand towel from the towel rack and soaked it in cold water. "Alexis, take this and place it against Katherine's neck. If I get down on that floor with the two of you, I'll never get up."

"I remember dad doing this when I'd get sick," Alexis took the towel and lifting Kate's hair; she placed it against her neck.

"I learned it from my mother and I taught it to your dad. Sometimes it'll calm the nausea," Martha sat on the edge of the tub right behind Kate. "Richard's calling Lanie, Kate, but I told him that if you get worse, he's taking you to the hospital. That is non-negotiable."

Out in the living room, Castle was waiting for Lanie to pick up. She finally answered her cell. "Lanie, its Castle. Kate is horribly sick. She said that you'd know what to do. She doesn't want to go back to the hospital."

"Define 'horribly sick,' Castle."

"Alexis found her in the bathroom. I think she's been in there for a while. She's been throwing up pretty uncontrollably."

"Castle, it's probably from the drugs working their way out of her system. Let me get Perlmutter to take over for me and I'll be there in about an hour. Move her if you can, but if not, we'll move her when I get there."

"Thank you, Lanie."

"You're welcome, sweetie. Tell Kate to hang tight and I'll be there as soon as I can."

When Castle went back into the bathroom, he smiled sadly at Alexis, who was sitting on the floor with Kate's head in her lap, her fingers stroking Kate's forehead. "Mother, Lanie wants us to try to move her."

"No, Castle," Kate tried to sit up.

"Kate, this floor is cold. You're going to be much more comfortable if we at least move you to the living room sofa."

"I can't stop throwing up, Castle."

"We'll get you something in case you need to throw up again. Mother, can you give me a hand? Just help me get her to her feet and I'll take it from there."

Martha helped him get Kate to her feet and then he lifted her into his arms and carried her into the living room, placing her carefully on the sofa, covering her with a light blanket. He then went into the kitchen and found a bucket under the sink. Martha adjusted the cool towel under Kate's neck as Castle came back in and sat on the edge of the sofa. Kate opened dull eyes to look at him.

"Dad, do you want me to go down the street to the store to get some ginger ale and saltines?"

"Yeah, that's a great idea, sweetie. Thank you," he smiled at her gratefully.

"Alexis, you have classes," Kate looked at the young redhead.

"Kate, it's okay. I want to help. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"How are you feeling, darling?"

"The cloth is helping, Martha. Thank you. Could I get some water? My mouth feels so—"

"Of course," Martha went into the kitchen, returning seconds later with a bottle of water.

Castle took the bottle and opened it, offering it to Kate. "Just take a couple of sips, Kate, because chances are, this isn't going to stay down."

Kate swished the water around her mouth and leaned over to spit into the bucket at her side. "I just wanted to clean my mouth out. My stomach is cramping so badly, Castle."

"I know, baby. Lanie will be here soon. Why didn't you wake me up? I would've got up with you."

"Castle, I was missing for three days. I know you didn't sleep much while I was missing. I didn't sleep much during those two months when you were gone. None of us did," she looked at Martha, who nodded in confirmation.

"I still would've got up with you."

She reached for his hand, tangling her fingers with his as her eyes slowly closed. Castle's eyes misted over when he listened to her let out an occasional whimper of pain. He was rubbing his thumb over her knuckles when the doorbell rang, causing Kate to tense up. "I'll get it," Martha placed a hand on Castle's shoulder. "It's probably Lanie."

Martha opened the front door and let Lanie into the apartment. The medical examiner was carrying a large canvas bag over her shoulder and holding an I.V. pole in her other hand. "How's our patient, Castle?" She asked, walking over to the sofa.

"She hasn't thrown up in about 20 minutes or so, but she said that her stomach's cramping badly."

"Hey, Kate? Can you open your eyes and talk to me for a minute? I've come to the rescue, but you really should be back in the hospital," Lanie motioned for Castle to move out of her way.

"No," Kate shook her head. "The smells . . . no. I can't go back there."

"Okay, sweetie. I'm going to start an I.V. to rehydrate you and I brought some compazine for the nausea and cramping. Just let me get everything ready and then we'll get you to feeling better."

"Thanks, Lanie."

Lanie went into the kitchen and put on a pair of gloves before mixing an I.V. solution. She then came back into the living room and hung the bag from the I.V. pole. Castle watched in morbid fascination as Lanie swabbed the back of Kate's hand and expertly put the large bore needle into it, taping it down with surgical tape. She then checked the rate of flow going into Kate's veins. "This will take about an hour or so to run. She'll start feeling better, but she'll probably be very sleepy. Once I take the I.V. out, we'll move her into your bedroom."

"Okay," Castle nodded agreeably. "Thanks, Lanie."

"You're welcome. Kate, is it all right if I stay for a little while?"

"Yeah," Kate smiled at her best friend. "Actually, can I talk to you alone for a minute?"

"I'll go and clean up in the bathroom," Castle bent and kissed her forehead.

"Call if you need anything," Martha told the two women.

"I feel awful," Kate groaned.

"I know," Lanie smiled. "The compazine will start kicking in soon and the cramping will ease up. What's on your mind?"

"They were going to kill me, Lanie. Is it true that Castle almost killed Tyson?"

"Yeah, he beat his head in. They did brain surgery, but the last that I heard was that even if he survives, he's probably never going to walk, talk, or do anything ever again."

"What about her?"

"Sweetie, why aren't you asking Castle these questions?"

"Rick has enough on his plate. I see it in his eyes when he looks at me. I don't want to make things worse."

"He was so scared, Kate. I'm so sorry."

"What are you sorry about?"

"I'm sorry that they somehow got my voice and used it to lure you away."

"That's on them, Lanie. Not on you. Can you do something else?"

"Sure."

"Can you do a blood draw and run a test?"

"What kind of a test? Oh," Lanie said as it became clear what Kate was talking about. "Sweetie, I think you're just sick because of the amounts of drugs that were in your system. But, is the other thing a possibility?"

"It's possible. We've been batting the idea around. But, if I am, will everything be okay? I mean, I know the first trimester is critical. I don't want something to be wrong."

"Kate, let's take things one step at a time. I'll draw some blood and run the test. I should know something by tomorrow. But they might have already checked at the hospital when you were admitted."

"No," Kate shook her head. "Castle would've said something."

"Okay. For right now, just relax and let the meds start working."

After making sure Kate was sleeping, Lanie got up and pulled off the gloves, throwing them into the kitchen trashcan and washing her hands before going into the bathroom where Castle and Martha were cleaning up. "How is she?" Castle asked.

"She's finally sleeping. I'll remove the I.V. in a little while and then you can move her. She's still not going to feel great for a few days, but I think the worst of it is over."

"I know that I should've taken her back to the hospital, but—"

"Castle, it's okay. I think the hospital brings back memories of what Nieman did to her. She mentioned the smells. Has she said anything about what she did to her?"

"No," he shook his head, sitting on the closed toilet lid. "She said she doesn't really remember it. She's said something about shadows and not being able to move, but that's about it."

"She made us turn all of the lights on last night," Martha added.

"Have you heard anything about their conditions?" Castle asked.

"They're still saying that with Nieman it's just a matter of time. I haven't heard anything else about Tyson. Just that his injuries will leave him permanently disabled if he does survive."

"Good," Castle got up to leave the room. "I'm going to go and sit with Kate."

"He feels guilty," Martha looked at the M.E. "He feels that he should've gone with her that day."

"If he had, they would've killed him. Kate wouldn't have survived if he hadn't found her. Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," Martha sat down on the edge of the vanity.

"Do you know if they ran a pregnancy test on Kate at the hospital when she was admitted? I know it's usually S.O.P., but Kate isn't sure."

"I think Richard would've said something if they had and it had been positive. Is there a possibility?"

"I don't know. Kate asked me if I'd run one. I guess she and Castle have been talking about it. So, you didn't hear the doctor say anything about high HgC levels?"

"Yes. He told Richard that they were normal. I even remember asking Richard what that meant and Alexis explained it to me. Does that mean Katherine isn't pregnant?"

"Yeah. High levels indicate pregnancy. Thanks, Martha."

"Lanie, maybe you should tell Richard that this is something Kate is concerned about. That way he can reassure her that their unborn child was never in danger."

Lanie hugged Martha before going out to check on Kate and talk to Castle. She found him in his office, his hands over his face. "Hey, Castle," she kept her voice low as he lifted his head up, wiping at his face. "Kate's going to be fine. She was worried about possibly being pregnant. Martha told me that the doctor told you—"

"She's not pregnant. I was worried about that, too. She was lying on that filthy mattress in that freezing cold room," his breath hitched at the memory. "Her arms and legs were bleeding and she looked like she was barely alive. I almost threw myself on top of her; I was so thankful that she was alive. She opened her eyes and she reached up and just touched her fingertips to my lips. Then she gave me this Mona Lisa type smile and passed out."

He began to sob as Lanie walked over and threw her arms around him, holding him close as her tears ran into his hair. "She's okay, Rick. She's okay, but the two of you are going to need each other. You have to help each other heal. You need to call Burke."

"I know," he pulled away and took a box of tissues from the corner of his desk, offering one to his friend.

"Let me check on her I.V. and then you can move her into your room."

***CCC***

"_Kate? Oh, Kate? You need to wake up, Kate."_

_Her eyes were so heavy. Where was she? One minute she'd been outside of the OCME offices and then . . . nothing. Her vision swam while she tried to focus on her surroundings. She tried to speak but something was impeding her mouth. _

"_One day, Castle is going to learn that he's not the smartest person in the room."_

"_Shut up, Jerry. Kate knows why she's here, don't you, Kate?"_

"_No," Kate managed to mumble around whatever was in her mouth._

"_He wasn't supposed to come back, Kate. You were never meant to marry him."_

"_No," Kate moaned again, struggling against her bonds._

"_What're your plans for her, anyway?" She heard Tyson ask._

"_I plan to make her perfect. I told you that a long time ago."_

Kate sat bolt upright, a scream dying in her throat. "Hey," she heard Castle before she felt him reach for her, holding her close against his chest, rubbing circles on her back.

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Uh, about five or six hours now. Lanie removed your I.V. and I moved you in here so that you'd be more comfortable. How do you feel?"

"A little queasy, but better. I smell awful," she wrinkled her nose. "Would you help me take a shower?"

"Yeah. Let me go get the plastic wrap."

By the time he came back, Kate was already in the bathroom and undressed. She sat down and Castle wrapped her injured limbs in several layers of plastic wrap. He then reached inside and turned on the water, getting it at a good temperature before she stepped inside. She washed her body and hair before rinsing off. The hot water felt wonderful. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so clean. After about 10 minutes, she turned off the water and stepped into the fluffy towel that Castle was holding out for her. After she was dried and dressed, he helped her put fresh dressings on her wrists and ankles. "Do they hurt?" He asked her.

"Not anymore."

"Kate, I talked to Lanie earlier. She said that you asked her to run a pregnancy test."

"I'm scared because of the drugs that they gave me. I wanted to know what our options would be."

"Kate, you're not pregnant. They checked and it was negative."

"I'm glad, Castle. I want things to be perfect before we have a baby. If I had been and they had done something to hurt our baby, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. This way, we can still talk about it and when the time is right, we'll have a baby."

"That sounds wonderful to me," he reached up and touched her cheek.

She reached for him and wrapped herself around him, enveloping herself in his warmth and the security that was her home with him. "Leave the lights on again?"

"Absolutely," he whispered into her damp hair. "Come on; let's get you back into bed."

Shortly after he got her settled into bed, he checked his cell phone and saw a message from Esposito. **'How's Beckett?'**

"What's wrong?" Kate asked him when she saw him frowning at his phone. "Bad news?"

"Esposito's checking on you. He wants to know if you're okay."

"It's all right to tell him the truth."

"And what is the truth?"

"That I'm damaged, but healing. I might have lost the battle, but I didn't lose the war."

"You didn't lose the battle either, Kate. You're still alive."

"Then why don't I feel alive? I dream about them, but I don't know if they're memories or just more nightmares."

"You should call Burke."

"Soon," she grabbed his hand. "Right now, you're the only therapy that I need. If the weather holds, can we go to the Hamptons in a few days?"

"I'll take you anywhere that you want to go."

"I need the wide open spaces. The city is feeling too confining."

"How about this weekend?"

"Perfect," she smiled that million kilowatt smile that he loved so much.

"Sleep," he softly kissed the top of her head. "If you need more lights on, I'll turn them on."

She cuddled into his chest, clutching onto his t-shirt as she slowly drifted off to sleep. He held her, rubbing her shoulders and upper back, listening to her breathing get deeper. He knew that even if Kate slept for the rest of the day and night, he knew that he wouldn't. He knew that he'd wake up soon and spend the rest of the night watching her. Keeping her safe was all that mattered to him anymore. He found himself thankful that Kate hadn't been pregnant. He wasn't sure he was ready to bring a child into a world where monsters like Kelly Nieman and Jerry Tyson were allowed to live in society.

**A/N #3: I can't believe how fast this story is flying off of my fingers. But, anyway. The Triple Killer makes his first appearance in the next chapter. Let's just say 'let the games begin.'**

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	6. Nothing is as it Seems

**DISCLAIMERS: Uh, no.**

**SUMMARY: Castle and Beckett make several shocking discoveries while investigating the murder of Cynthia Shields. And as the evening draws to a close, Beckett finds herself in extreme danger.**

**A/N #1: Once again, I want to thank everyone for the wonderful reviews for this story.**

**A/N #2: I'm using Jerry Tyson's Mike Boudreau identity from 7x14 so as not to confuse my readers any further than I already am.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 6: Nothing is as it Seems**

_80 Hours Earlier_

Kate and Castle went to the precinct once the body of Cynthia Shields was transported to the morgue and the crime scene was processed. "Did she give you an address, Castle?" Kate asked her husband.

"Yeah, hold on," he looked at his phone. "Joseph and Margaret Shields. They have an address in Long Island City."

"Okay, I'll call and have them come in."

"He's back, isn't he?" Castle looked at her.

"The braided rope is his signature. 1PP is not going to want to hear that Jerry Tyson is alive. The NYPD hates being embarrassed."

"So, is it better that they ignore that a serial killer is still alive and back to killing people?" Castle's tone was sarcastic.

"That's not what I'm saying, babe. We're going to get him this time and put him away for good."

"Hopefully him and his evil little minion, Dr. Kelly Nieman or whatever the hell she's calling herself these days."

"Speaking of Dr. Kelly Nieman, I need to check to see if that background check has come back on her alter ego yet."

Kate was on the phone when Ryan and Esposito came in at seven. "Castle, welcome back, bro," Espo and Castle fed the baby birds as Kate rolled her eyes.

"Espo, where were you on the background check on Dr. Elizabeth Reilly?" Kate asked after hanging up the phone.

"They told me that we should have it sometime this morning. Have you talked to the parents of the dead woman yet?"

"I spoke to them an hour ago and they're on their way in now. Speaking of which," she nodded as an older couple cautiously rounded the corner into the bullpen. "Mr. and Mrs. Shields? I'm Det. Kate Beckett and this is Richard Castle. Let's talk somewhere in private."

"What is this about, Det. Beckett?" Mr. Shields was a tall, gray-haired man in his 60's while his wife was a mousey looking woman a few years younger, which made her seem far older than her years.

"Please have a seat," Kate motioned them to sit on the battered sofa in a private interview room. "It's about your daughter, Cynthia."

Castle caught the gasp that came from Mrs. Shield's throat. "Mrs. Shields?" He looked at the woman.

"What about Cynthia?"

"We found a body late last night which has been tentatively identified as your daughter," Kate began to explain.

"How was she identified?" Mr. Shields asked.

"I'm a private investigator, Mr. Shields. Cynthia came to my office two days ago saying that you wanted to investigate a plastic surgeon that she wanted to start seeing."

"That isn't possible," he shook his head.

"Mr. Shields, her body is in the morgue right now. We can take you down there to make a positive id—"

"No, you don't understand. We had a daughter named Cynthia, but she died in 1986 when she was five years old. We had no other children and I don't know anything about hiring a private investigator," Mr. Shields explained to Kate and Castle.

Kate closed her eyes and took a deep breath. If the woman who had come to Castle's office wasn't Cynthia Shields, who was she? "I am so sorry."

"How did this young woman die?" Mrs. Shields asked.

"Maggie, that's none of our concern," Mr. Shields rose to his feet. "Are you saying that this dead woman stole the identity of our own dead child?"

"It would appear that way."

"So, you don't know who this dead girl is or where her parents are?" Mrs. Shields looked incredibly sad.

"Maggie, let's go."

"Wait, Joe! What happens if you don't find her family?"

"She'll be kept in the morgue until her family can be found. If no family is found, then the county will bury her."

"That is so sad."

"Maggie!"

Mrs. Shields finally got up and timidly followed her husband out of the room. "She's right, you know," Castle remarked. "It is sad."

Kate pulled out her phone and called Lanie. "Lanie, the dead girl on your slab isn't the real Cynthia Shields. She stole the identity of a child that died in 1986. Can you run her prints through the database and find out who she really is?"

"Kate, I've already got her real identity. But there's something else that I need to show you."

"Okay, we're on our way. Lanie has something."

***CCC***

Castle was uncharacteristically quiet during the ride to the OCME. Kate glanced over at him. "Are you okay?"

"I was just thinking about what Mrs. Shields said. If something ever happened to Alexis and they couldn't ID her, it would kill me to think of her lying in a grave, unmarked and uncared for by family."

"Most times, we find some family. But with a girl like this one who had stolen an identity, it gets tricky. Hopefully we'll find out her real identity and get her back to where she belongs."

Lanie was standing by the body of the girl they'd found the night before when Castle and Beckett walked in. "Hey," she looked up.

"Hey, Lanie. You said that you have something on our victim," Kate looked at the body on the stainless steel slab.

"Her real name is Stephanie Fullerton. She has a record for shoplifting and petty larceny. She's 22 years old and she has a mother who lives in Paramus, New Jersey. And she has cheek implants that had been put in by the same surgeon who operated on Pam Hodges."

"Kelly Nieman," Castle and Beckett said at the same time.

"Yeah," Lanie sighed.

"It was a setup," Castle muttered.

"What're you talking about?" Kate turned to face him.

"Nieman sent Cynthia or Stephanie or whoever this girl is," Castle jabbed his finger angrily at the dead girl on the slab. "She knew that I'd take the case and she knew that it would lead us to her! This is just more of her fucking mind games! Who's her target this time, Kate? Ryan, Jenny, Capt. Gates . . . you?"

Castle turned and stormed through the double doors of the morgue. "Thanks, Lanie," Kate gave her friend a sad smile.

"You're welcome, sweetie."

Castle was standing by the Crown Vic when Kate walked out of the morgue. "Hey, are you okay?"

"I just want it to end, Kate. It was bad enough when we had to deal with Tyson. Now we have two of them to constantly watch out for. She's smart and she knows it."

"She's going to slip up, Castle. Even very intelligent people make mistakes. Come on, let's go to New Jersey and talk to Stephanie Fullerton's mother."

Carla Fullerton lived in a rundown trailer park on the outskirts of Paramus, New Jersey. Kate and Castle walked up to the door and Kate rapped on it a few times. A tired looking woman in her late 40's with a cigarette dangling from her lips opened the door wearing a ratty bathrobe. "Yeah? Can I help you?"

"I'm Det. Kate Beckett, NYPD; this is Richard Castle. Are you Carla Fullerton?"

"Fullerton was my married name. I went back to my maiden name of Ivy."

Ms. Ivy, we're here about your daughter Stephanie. Can we talk inside?"

"I guess," she shoved the door opened and waved them inside.

The inside of the trailer almost looked worse than the outside. There were newspapers and other debris piled up all over the small living space. Carla Ivy swept more debris onto the floor from a sofa, indicating this was where her visitors were to sit. She then took a seat in a battered recliner. "Can I get you some coffee or something?"

"No, thank you."

"Are you here to tell me that Stephanie's dead?" She blurted out.

"Yes, I'm sorry to say."

"You don't seem surprised," Castle added.

"I've been expecting it for a long time now. You know; that call in the middle of the night or that knock on the door that no parent wants to get."

"When was the last time that you heard from Stephanie?" Kate took out her notepad.

"It was about three or four months ago. She told me that she'd gotten this really great job and she'd be able to help me out. I told her that if she was stealing again, I didn't want to hear nothing about it."

"We saw that Stephanie had a record."

"She never did anything violent. She wasn't that kind of kid. She just wanted the things that all of her friends had, so she'd steal to get it. But I knew that she was going to meet a bad end, just like her old man."

"What happened to her father?" Castle asked.

"He got shot while pulling a robbery. The store owner had a gun and shot him. Stephanie was 11 at the time and she never got over it."

"Do you know where Stephanie was living?" Kate asked.

"She said that she was living with a guy in the city. His name is Mike . . . Mike . . . I know that his last name sounds like something you'd hear in New Orleans. Hold on, I think I wrote it down somewhere."

Ms. Ivy got up and went into the kitchen where she began rooting through a cluttered bowl. "Here it is! Mike Boudreau. He lives on 168th Street," she handed a slip of paper to Kate.

"Thank you, Ms. Ivy. I'm sorry for your loss."

"I didn't recognize her the last time that I saw her. She'd had work done on her face."

"Ms. Ivy, did she tell you the name of the plastic surgeon that did the work on her face?" Castle asked.

"Yes. She even showed me her website. It was Dr. Elizabeth Reilly."

"Thank you," Kate walked out of the door with Castle right behind her. Her phone rang just as they were getting in the car. "Beckett."

"Beckett, I got the background information back on Elizabeth Reilly. The D.O.B. matches the information that she gave us yesterday."

"Why do I sense a 'but' coming?"

"Oh, there's a big 'but' coming. Her fingerprints don't match the ones on file for Elizabeth Reilly and the photo from the State Medical Board definitely don't match. The woman posing as Elizabeth Reilly is Kelly Nieman, Beckett."

"Pick her up," Kate ordered. "Her info from the State Medical Board doesn't match who she's claiming to be, Castle."

"So, our next question is what happened to the real Elizabeth Reilly?"

"Well, let's go talk to Stephanie's boyfriend and then we'll figure out where we're going from there. Are you feeling better now?" She glanced at him.

"I apologize for my outburst back there."

"Castle, I don't want you to ever apologize to me for showing your true feelings. I'll feel better when we get both of them in prison where they belong," she reached across the seat for his hand, smiling when he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Under the prison would be better."

The apartment building on 168th Street looked like it had definitely seen better days. Beckett and Castle got out of their car, strapping on their bullet proof vests. Kate looked at Castle as she finished strapping her vest. "I don't know what we're going to find up there. I'd rather be safe than sorry."

"You won't get an argument from me on that point," he followed Kate into the building and up five flights of stairs, stopping in front of number 518. Kate stood to one side of the door while Castle stepped to the other side. Taking a defensive stance, Kate knocked on the door. "Michael Boudreau! NYPD! We need to talk to you about your girlfriend, Stephanie Fullerton!"

"He could know her as Cynthia Shields," Castle pointed out.

Instead of hearing the chain slide back on the door, they heard the sound of a window opening and scuffling. "He's making a run for it!" Kate kicked in the door and they saw a tall man attempting to escape out onto the fire escape. "Freeze! Turn around with your hands in the air! Do it now, Boudreau!"

But the man who turned around froze Castle and Beckett in their tracks. "It looks like you finally caught up with me, Det. Beckett," Jerry Tyson stepped back into the apartment with his hands in the air. "It looks like she managed to clear your name after all, Castle."

"Turn around and put your hands behind your head," Kate yanked her handcuffs from her belt and quickly secured Tyson's hands. "Jerry Tyson, you have the right to remain silent. If you give up that right, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford an attorney, one will be provided to you by a court of law. Do you understand these rights that I've just read to you?" Once he was handcuffed, she moved him into a chair and took out her phone, calling the precinct. "Capt. Gates, this is Beckett. We have Jerry Tyson in custody. We'll be at the precinct with him in about half an hour."

"Did he put up a struggle?"

"No, sir. We'll be there soon."

"Be careful, Beckett."

"Yes, sir."

Beckett walked Tyson down to the car with Castle right behind them, watching the serial killer like a hawk. He knew only too well what the man was capable of and he knew that it was best not to trust him any further than he could throw him. Kate put him in the back seat and tightened the seat belt across his body.

Castle got into the passenger seat and watched his nemesis through the rear view mirror. "I know the questions that are running through your head, Castle," Tyson met his eyes through the mirror. "You're wondering how I survived the fall from that bridge. It's quite a story, let me tell you."

"Tyson, you've been advised of your right to remain silent. I suggest that you just sit there and shut the hell up," Kate warned him. "You'll have plenty of time to tell us your story once we get you in an interrogation room."

Every eye in the bullpen was trained on the elevator. They burst into applause when Kate and Castle stepped off of the elevator with Tyson between them. Esposito and Ryan walked up to them. "Kelly Nieman is in Interview Room One."

"Did she resist?"

"No," Espo said. "What about him?"

"He tried to flee, but once we entered the apartment, he gave up peacefully. Take him to two and keep an eye on him. Castle, let's go talk to Nieman first."

"Come on," Espo grabbed Tyson's arm and led him away.

"Beckett!" Kate turned toward her captain's voice. "Where did you find him?"

"He was sharing an apartment with Stephanie Fullerton. We were told by her mother that the boyfriend's name was Mike Boudreau."

"So, when you went to the apartment, Tyson answered the door?"

"No, we heard him trying to flee. I kicked in the door and caught him trying to escape down the fire escape. Needless to say, we were shocked when he turned and we saw who it was."

"I'll call the D.A. and let him know that we've got both of them in custody."

"Yes, sir. Come on, Castle." Kate took a deep breath and squared her shoulders back before unlocking the interrogation room and facing Dr. Kelly Nieman once again.

"I guess the gig is up, huh, Detective?"

"Did you really think that we weren't going to find out your true identity? We just arrested your partner," Kate sat down with Castle by her side.

"I'm sorry, I don't have a partner."

"Sure, you do. Jerry Tyson. We just arrested him in the apartment he was sharing with Cynthia Shields. Do you remember Cynthia Shields? Actually that's not her real name, but the name she stole from a dead five-year-old. You put cheek implants in her face, just like Pam Hodges over a year ago. Do you remember Cynthia?"

"I told you, Detective, that I never forget a face. Especially one that I cut."

"Did you ask Cynthia to go to Mr. Castle and hire him so that we'd find you?"

"Detective Beckett, why would I want you to find me?"

"Because you like playing games."

"Detective Beckett, the NYPD ruined my life and my career. That is why I changed my name and moved to Brighton Beach."

"What happened to Elizabeth Reilly?"

"Elizabeth Reilly was a name that I saw while walking through a cemetery. I thought it sounded like a good name for a plastic surgeon."

"So, you didn't kill her?"

"No, Detective. I've never killed anyone."

"No, you just get other people to do that for you," Castle spoke for the first time since entering the room.

"Other people? Detective, why don't we both just put all of our cards on the table here? Why are you waging such a vendetta against me?"

"You arranged for Carl Matthews to kill Pam Hodges and Daniel Santos in a manner that is reminiscent of serial killer Jerry Tyson."

"Did Mr. Matthews tell you this?" Kate didn't say anything. "Do you have any other proof that I hired or arranged for this Matthews to kill Ms. Hodges and Mr. Santos? I admitted that Pam Hodges and Daniel Santos were former patients. I also admitted to having a sexual relationship with Mr. Santos. That is where my association with those two people ended."

"You don't know Jerry Tyson?" Kate asked.

"I answered that question yesterday, Detective. I know who he is from what I've read, but I don't _personally _know him."

"Well, forgive my skepticism, but I don't believe you."

"That's your prerogative. Am I free to go?"

"Are you-? No, you're not free to go."

"Det. Beckett, you really shouldn't get so angry. Anger isn't good for your facial features."

"Just sit tight," Kate got up and quickly left the room with Castle right behind her. "Ryan! See if you can find the family of Elizabeth Reilly!"

"On it!"

She then went into the ob room where Esposito was watching Jerry Tyson from behind the one-way glass. "Castle, I don't want you going in there with me. I don't want to watch him engage in his mind games with you."

"Okay," he reluctantly agreed.

"Come on, Espo," Kate looked at her friend before they left the ob room and went into the interrogation room. "Mr. Tyson, do you remember Det. Esposito?"

"Yeah, I think I remember him. Your partner was the Irish cop that I knocked out after you arrested Marcus Gates for assaulting my girlfriend."

"Yeah, you stole his gun and it was later used in another murder."

"Tell us about Dr. Kelly Neiman," Kate folded her hands in front of her.

"That's a funny story, actually," Tyson chuckled, cutting it short when he saw that his audience clearly wasn't amused. "I met her when I was in prison. She volunteered in the infirmary and then later, she became the prison doctor. She was the one who took care of me when I got the shit beat out of me."

"You mean, when you arranged to have the shit beat out of you so that we'd get you out," Kate corrected him.

"Sure, whatever. But it turns out that we actually knew each other a long time ago. We were in the same crappy foster home together."

"Do you remember the name of the family?" Espo asked.

"Uh, Grayson, I think it was. I was in a lot of those places after my mom died. After a while, the names and faces kind of ran together."

Castle was watching the interview when Capt. Gates entered the room. "How did the brass at 1PP react when you told them that Tyson had risen from the dead?" He looked at her.

"Mr. Castle, I don't blame you for adopting an 'I told you so' attitude, but the man was shot off of a 100 foot bridge. We all figured that his body had just gotten sucked into the East River."

"He's like the cockroach that won't die. He bugged my home; he framed me for murder; he watched me with my daughter and listened to me make love to my girlfriend," Castle hissed through clenched teeth. "I don't know which one of the two of them is more mentally ill."

"They bring out the worst in each other, that's for sure."

They both resumed watching the scene in the interview room. "Where did you go after that night on the bridge?" Kate asked.

"I hit the water pretty hard. It fucked me up. I don't remember how I got out of the water; that's the god's honest truth. I managed to get out and I called her."

"You called Nieman?" Kate looked at him as he nodded. "She nursed you back to health?"

"I was messed up for over a year. She started talking about getting revenge on Castle for doing this to me. We went to Florida and stayed there for a few months. I think that's when she met Carl Matthews."

"Did you meet Matthews?"

"On the dock where that girl's body was found."

"Pam Hodges?" Espo asked.

"Yeah."

"How did you come up with the identity of Mike Boudreau?" Kate asked.

"Kelly found it for me when we came back to New York. She tried to keep me out of sight. She knew that I was too recognizable."

"Tell us about Cynthia Shields."

"Cindy was a really sweet kid," he smiled. "I met her at the clinic in Brighton Beach. But I think Kelly was jealous of her. She told me if I didn't kill Cindy, she'd call the police and turn me in."

"Are you sure that Dr. Nieman didn't create Cindy as a potential victim for you? After all, she's blonde and pretty, exactly your type," Kate looked at him.

"Det. Beckett, I don't need anyone to find victims for me. You should know that by now."

"You feel like writing out your confession?" Espo asked him.

"Sure, I've got nothing else better to do," Tyson smirked.

"Write your statement. I'm going to call the D.A. and tell him what we have. Esposito, when he's done with his statement, take him to holding."

Kate walked into the bullpen, rubbing her face before collapsing into her chair and picking up the phone. She talked to the D.A. and then hung up, looking at Castle, who was sitting in his chair with a dark expression on his face. He glanced up when he felt her watching him. "Something's off, Kate."

"What're you talking about? Castle, we have them both in custody. Tyson's giving his statement. For once, all of the pieces are falling into place."

"No," he shook his head. "He's being too compliant. I don't know how, but we're being played by them again."

"Castle, believe me, we have them dead to rights."

"Yo, Beckett!" Ryan called out. "I found the family of Elizabeth Reilly. She died in a car accident in 2001."

"Well, we know that's one person who wasn't a victim of Nieman or Tyson," Kate said sarcastically.

Suddenly the overhead lights flickered briefly before the power went out in the building. "Terrific," Castle muttered.

"Hold on, people! The emergency lights will come on in a moment!" Gates called out. "It's probably a power outage due to the weather. I'll call Con-Ed to see how long they expect the power to be out."

"Castle, relax," Kate smiled at her husband. "Tyson and Nieman didn't cause the power to go out."

The emergency lights came on five minutes later, lighting the bullpen in shadowy yellow light. Gates came out of her office looking pale. "I just got off of the phone with maintenance. The outage wasn't caused by the weather. Someone tripped the main breaker in the basement. Beckett, where are Tyson and Nieman?"

"Nieman is in Interview One and Tyson is writing his statement down for Esposito in Two."

"Check on both of them. Now!"

Beckett, Castle and Ryan ran down the corridor stopping in front of Interview Room Two. When they opened the door, they found Esposito unconscious on the floor and no sign of Tyson. "Espo," Kate knelt down beside the Latino man, who stirred and groaned. "Espo, what happened?"

"I don't know," Castle and Beckett helped him to a sitting position. "Tyson was sitting there writing and then . . . fuck! Where in the hell is he?"

"Beckett, Nieman's gone, too," Ryan re-entered the room. "I'll call a bus."

"No, I'm okay," Espo waved him off.

"Where are they? How in the hell did they get out of here without anybody seeing them?" Beckett ran out of the room. "We need to lock down the precinct! Nieman and Tyson are gone!" Her cell phone rang. "Beckett!"

"Kate, its Lanie. There's something down here that you need to see. I found something else on Cynthia Shields' body."

"What did you find? Lanie, we've got an emergency down here. Can't you tell me over the phone?"

"Kate, I really need to show you in person."

"Fine," Kate huffed. "I'll be there in half an hour or so."

"Thanks, Kate."

"That was Lanie. She found something else on Cynthia Shields body that she needs me to see. Are you coming with me, Castle?"

"I think I'd be of more use helping the boys and Gates try to figure out how Tyson and Nieman escaped from custody."

"Okay. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Kate took the stairs two at a time, just as the power came back on in the building. How in the hell did two people walk out of a building full of cops without anybody seeing them? What in the hell did they do? Sprout wings and fly? Kate's thoughts were all over the place as she drove to the OCME building. The rain was coming down in sheets when she got out of her car. She was almost to the building when her cell phone rang again. She didn't recognize the number on her caller id. "Beckett," her voice was cautious.

"'We'll meet again, don't know where, don't know when,"' sang the voice over the phone.

Kate barely had time to react when she felt a sharp jab in her arm. She gasped in pain before the world faded to black. "Get her in the car," Nieman ordered Tyson. "Hurry up before someone sees us."

***CCC***

Because of the power outage, there was no surveillance footage of Tyson and Nieman from the moments after the escape. They were watching image after image in the electronics room with Tori when Castle finally spotted Tyson and Nieman getting into a cab down the street from the precinct. "Can anybody see the medallion number?" Castle asked.

"Yeah, got it! I'll call the cab company," Ryan pulled out his cell phone.

"Castle, shouldn't Beckett be back by now?" Esposito asked.

Castle looked at his watch, shocked when he saw that almost three hours had gone by. They had been so busy looking at video footage that he'd lost track of time. He pulled out his phone and called Kate. "You've reached the voicemail of Kate Beckett. At the tone, please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

"Kate, its Castle. Kate, please pick up the phone." He hung up and called Lanie's number. "Lanie, its Castle. Can I talk to Kate? She's not picking up her phone."

"Castle, what in the hell are you talking about? Kate isn't here."

"She went to the OCME to see what else you found on Cynthia Shields' body."

"Castle, I haven't talked to Kate since this morning."

"Shit," he said as Esposito alerted to something being very wrong. "Kate said Cynthia Shields' body. You would've used the name of Stephanie Fullerton. Lanie, I have to go." He hung up and looked at his friends. "Get Gates. Nieman and Tyson have Beckett."

**A/N #3: I was going to break this up, but I couldn't find a good stopping place, so I decided to just make it longer and get it all in. I hope that it makes some kind of sense.**

**A/N #4: Four more days! Hopefully tomorrow the Sneak Peek will be out, although I'm almost too terrified to watch it.**

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	7. Only Skin Deep

**DISCLAIMERS: No, I still don't own 'Castle' or the characters.**

**SUMMARY: Kate continues to recover while more terrifying memories begin to creep to the surface.**

**A/N #1: This chapter is for Torontosun, who wanted me to add more Jim Beckett. He will figure quite prominently in this chapter.**

**A/N #2: SPOILER ALERT – I do reference something from the sneak peek.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 7: Only Skin Deep**

_Present Day_

Kate sat on the corner of the leather sofa watching Castle bustle around the kitchen. Every so often, he'd meet her eyes over the countertop and give her a smile, which she could never help but return.

She was dressed in a pair of pajama pants and one of his t-shirts, her hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun, her face devoid of makeup. He was happy to see that the dark circles seemed to be disappearing from under her eyes and she didn't look quite as haunted as she had the last couple of days. While her stomach was still queasy, she'd managed to eat some lightly buttered toast and plain yogurt that morning.

"What do you want to do today?" He asked, coming over to the sofa and sitting next to her, pulling her bare feet into his lap.

"Just be with you," she smiled. "Castle, you promised that you'd give me more details when I felt stronger."

"I know," he rubbed her feet gently. "Your feet are cold. I should go and get your slippers."

"Later," she moved closer to him, slipping her arms around his neck. "How did they get out of the precinct?"

"One of the maintenance workers' mistakes turned into a lucky break for them. The guy was in the basement replacing some fuses when he inadvertently hit the main breaker. It was a totally honest mistake. He was grilled and re-grilled by IAB and 1PP. It was an honest to god accident."

"The power went out in the building and they were just able to walk out?"

"Not quite. It was Ryan who noticed it. We had Tyson in Interview Two while Nieman was in One. I think they had somehow planned on escaping in this fashion all along, but anyway, Ryan noticed that there was a footprint on the table. They got out through the ceiling and dropped down near one of the exit doors. The five minutes or so that the lights were out gave them plenty of time to escape through the fire door and out of the precinct."

"They both escaped through the ceiling panels?"

"Yeah. We caught them on surveillance hailing a cab down the block from the 12th. By that time, they were long gone and so were you," his eyes misted over.

"Don't," she climbed into his lap, stroking his cheek with her thumb. "I'm safe now. Why do I remember her being in the precinct, but not him?"

"I don't know. Espo called last night after you were asleep. He said they got a court order for both of their records while they were in foster care. They're going to try to talk to the foster family where they met."

"They met while in foster care?" She stared at him.

"Yeah. Maybe that's where it all started. Look, I just want you to rest and not think about either of them. Okay?"

"Okay," she brushed her lips against his before laying her head on his shoulder, feeling comfort in the way he held her against him.

They were still sitting like that when the doorbell rang half an hour later. "We're not expecting any company," he said, carefully moving Kate before getting up and walking over to the door, tentatively opening it to find Jim Beckett standing there.

"Dad?" Kate's face brightened at the sight of her father.

"I thought that I'd come and check on you. I called yesterday, but Rick said you were a little under the weather. How are you feeling?" Jim Beckett walked over as Kate stood. She fought back tears when she felt him enfold her in his arms.

"I'm better. I'm still tired, but at least I can eat now."

"That's good because I brought you these," he held out a box of oatmeal cookies, smiling at her childlike expression of utter glee.

"I love oatmeal cookies!"

"I know. I'm your father, remember?"

"I'm going to go and straighten up our bedroom," Castle bent down and kissed the top of her head.

"Rick, you don't have to leave," Jim told him.

"It's okay. You two visit."

"He's struggling," Kate explained. "We both are, but he doesn't sleep, dad. It's like he feels like he has to stay awake to keep watch over me. He was like this after what happened to Alexis in Paris, but this time it just seems worse."

"He's protective over his family," Jim took her hand, grimacing at the sight of her split fingernails. "He told me that he felt responsible because this happened on his watch. He felt like all of the signs were there, but he saw all of them too late."

"I don't remember much and what I do remember comes in flashes that I'm not sure are real or my imagination. She was so . . . obsessive."

"Who? Nieman?" He asked as Kate bit her lip and nodded.

"Maybe if I looked . . . different, she would've left me alone. Maybe if I didn't have this face, she wouldn't have been so obsessed with trying to make me perfect." 

"Katie, stop," her father urged her. "She was a sociopath. Her illness had nothing to do with you. It was just the way that she was."

"I keep hearing them in my head. He kept burning me. They kept telling me that I wasn't meant to be with Castle. Then she'd get in my face with a scalpel in her hand. She said that she'd destroy me and in the process it would destroy Rick, too. There was always this light swinging from the ceiling. It would throw these shadows that were more terrifying than the two of them."

On the other side of the bookshelves, Castle stood there listening to Kate talking to her father. He knew why she was telling her dad the things that she couldn't tell him. She didn't want him more emotionally devastated than he already was. She would always try to protect him while he'd failed miserably when it came to protecting her. He never should've let her leave the precinct alone that night.

"Do you remember when they found you?" He heard Jim ask.

"No," she shook her head. "I remember waking up and I felt warm. And nothing was hurting. No one was screaming in my head. I saw Castle by my bed, but I thought that I was dreaming. Or dead. Castle told me that he beat Tyson almost to death."

"Yeah, he did."

"What about her? Castle told me that she tried to take the coward's way out."

"She's gone, Katie. It was on the news this morning. She died late last night. Maybe Rick should be telling you this—"

"No, it's okay. She's really gone?" She looked him in the eye as he nodded. "Did she ever say anything?"

"I don't think she ever regained consciousness."

"It's too bad that she went out so easily. She should've suffered the way that she made me and Rick suffer. She should've had someone standing over her with a scalpel to her eyes, threatening to carve up her face so that her husband would never look at her," tears slid down Kate's face, turning into choking sobs as she felt her father's arms come around her and hold her close to him.

"Katie, it's okay. It's over now and you're safe. They can't hurt you or Rick ever again." He noticed Castle standing in his office doorway and nodded for him to come over.

"Kate?" Castle whispered her name, startled when she turned from her father and hurled herself into his arms, her sobs interspersed with small screams. "It's okay. I'm here now. I've got you and you're going to be okay."

Watching his daughter with her husband, Jim felt thankful that she'd found a man who loved her and would always be there to take care of her. "I always sucked at this part," he told Castle. "That's why it's a good thing that Jo wasn't a big crier."

"Dad's idea of dealing with mom's occasional emotional outburst was offering her his American Express card," Kate looked at her father with a bemused expression on her face. "I'm going to go and wash my face. I'll be right back."

"How much of that did you hear?" Jim asked once Kate had left the room.

"Just the last part. I've been trying not to talk about it too much with her."

"Rick, maybe that's the wrong approach. Let her talk to you if that's what she needs to do. You know Katie well enough by now to know that if she doesn't want to talk, then she's not going to talk," the older man smiled.

"That's true. I should've done a better job of protecting her," Castle flexed his severely lacerated hands.

"Rick, listen to me. Are you listening?" Rick lifted his eyes to look into his father-in-law's. "You didn't fail her. From what I understand, if it hadn't been for you, the police never would've found Katie alive. Never doubt your ability to protect her." He smiled when Kate walked back into the room, her eyes bright. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, but now I'm really tired," she settled back against the arm of the couch. "You can ask Castle; I've been lousy company the last couple of days."

"That's because you're still recuperating," he stood up and bent down to kiss her forehead. "I'm going to go and let you get some rest."

"No, dad," she grabbed his hand. "You don't have to leave. I never sleep long. The nightmares always wake me up. Castle's been looking for a chess partner. I can't stay awake long enough these days."

"Get the board, Rick," Jim told his son-in-law.

***CCC***

Rick and Jim were both studying the chess board between them on the dining table when they heard a key in the front door. "Hi, dad," Alexis breezed in, smiling when she saw Jim. "Hi, Jim. I didn't know you were visiting today," she walked over, hugging the older man around the shoulders before coming over to greet her father, adding a kiss to his cheek. She then looked over and lowered her voice when she saw Kate curled up asleep on the sofa. "I'm sorry; I didn't know Kate was sleeping."

"It's okay, sweetie. How was class?"

"Good. I came home to grab a bite to eat and then I'm heading to the library."

Kate opened her eyes when she heard voices. She smiled when she saw her family interacting with each other. She sat up and ran a hand through her now even messier bun. "How long have I been asleep?"

"About an hour or so," Castle told her.

"Kate, I didn't mean to wake you," Alexis apologized.

"You didn't, sweetie. So dad, did you manage to beat Rick at chess?"

"No, I think it was a draw."

Alexis went into the kitchen and grabbed a container of yogurt, looking across the counter at Kate, who nodded. She grabbed a second container and another spoon before walking over to the sofa and giving the other yogurt and spoon to Kate. "Thanks. I'm starving, but I'm afraid to eat anything heavier."

"Your stomach's still a little topsy-turvy, huh?" Alexis made a face as Kate nodded.

"Katie, I really need to get going. I have a meeting with a client in about an hour. I'll call you in a couple of days and we'll all get together for dinner."

Kate put her yogurt down and stood up to hug her father. "I'm sorry I was such lousy company."

"You were fine. Today was the first time in a long time that I've got to watch you sleep. You are still as adorable today as you were when you were 10," he smiled when Kate rolled her eyes.

"My dad said the same thing when he'd watch me sleep," Alexis laughed.

"Thank you for coming by and . . . for listening."

"You're welcome, sweetheart. Rick, take care of our girl," Jim warned him.

"You've got it," he smiled.

Castle walked him to the door, talking to him in hushed tones before Jim left the apartment. "What was that all about?" Kate asked when he walked back over to the sofa.

"Just something that we were discussing earlier. Do you think that you could keep down some scrambled eggs?"

"Scrambled eggs actually sound wonderful. Can you add an English muffin?"

"I can do that," he kissed her temple. "Alexis, can I make you some breakfast for dinner?"

"I'd love to, but I really need to get to the library. I'll be back around nine. Bye, Kate," she kissed Kate on the cheek before following her dad to the kitchen. "Bye, dad."

"Bye, pumpkin. Be careful."

Castle cooked scrambled eggs for himself and Kate, adding the English muffin for her and some bacon for himself. "You're looking much better," he observed. "You look more rested."

"I just wish that I could stay awake for more than two hours at a time. I miss talking to you," she covered his hand with hers. "Did a doctor see your hands?"

"Yes, he did. Nothing's broken. They're just bruised and badly cut up, as you can see."

"Do they hurt?"

He looked into Kate's eyes and saw the pain reflected there. He knew that he could lie and tell her that they didn't hurt, but he knew that wasn't what she wanted or needed to hear. "Yeah, they hurt," he admitted. "But the pain was so worth getting you back alive in the end. I'd do it a hundred times over if I had to."

"You know, Castle, you don't have to keep watch over me every night." He looked at her like he had no idea what she was talking about, so she continued. "I'm okay. Except for the nightmares and we're both all too familiar with those. I know that you're not sleeping. At least not much. I'm okay," she repeated. "And I'm not going anywhere."

"I don't see how you did it for two months," he was of course referring to his disappearance. "You were gone for two and a half days and I was a wreck. How did you do it, Kate? How did you keep from losing hope that I was ever going to come home?"

"I didn't have a choice. Like I told you, I did lose hope a few times. And it did get more difficult toward the end of that time. But I simply wouldn't let myself think that the outcome was ever going to be anything but positive. I knew that you had to come home. Nothing else was even a possibility."

"If the tables had been turned and it had been me that lost you for two months, I wouldn't have survived it. I think at one point Gates and the boys considered calling psych services for me. Your strength never ceases to amaze me," his eyes were watery when he looked at her.

"I'm not strong," she argued with him, before she grabbed her dinner plate and took it to the kitchen.

"Kate, how can you say that?" He got up and followed her.

"I wanted her to kill me, Castle," she turned from the sink to face him. "Even if it meant that I'd never see you again, I just wanted her to kill me and get it over with. I remember at one point telling her that. She just laughed and told me that wasn't the plan."

"How much do you remember, Kate?"

"I still don't remember everything, but I do remember that. He wasn't there. At least he wasn't there at first. He showed up sometime later and I remember that she started screaming at him."

"Screaming at him about what?"

"She asked him about his face. I was so out of it that I must've passed out again."

Inwardly Castle grinned, knowing that Tyson must've shown up after he'd threatened him at his apartment. "What did she tell you, Kate?"

"She told me that she was going to cut up my face so that no amount of plastic surgery would ever fix it. She said that she was going to make it so that you'd never look at me again. Castle, if I didn't look like this, she would've left me alone. I grew up always hearing about how I'd inherited my mother's cheekbones and her smile. But I was never that self-absorbed with how I looked."

"Kate, listen to me. Come here," he took her hand and led her over to the sofa where he sat down and tugged her down next to him. "I'm not going to argue that I don't find you physically beautiful, because I do. But that's not all that I fell in love with. Kate Beckett is more than just a beautiful face. The Kate Beckett that I fell in love with is caring, funny, sweet, sarcastic," she rolled her eyes at him. "The Kate Beckett that I fell in love with is also the strongest, most courageous, and extraordinary woman I've ever known. Nothing that woman could do to you will ever change that."

"You had an encounter with him before you found me, didn't you? You're what happened to his face," she confronted him straight on, her eyes daring him to deny the accusation.

"I followed him back to the apartment that he was sharing with Stephanie Fullerton. When he answered the door, he tried to close it, but I shoved it opened and hit him in the face with it. He tried to deny that he was even Tyson, but I pulled a gun on him. I told him that I didn't believe him."

"Rick—"

"The boys followed me. They stopped me right before I shot him. I just wanted to know where you were," his voice caught in his throat. "The boys took me back to the 12th and Gates dressed me down. She told me that we needed to work the evidence. She told me that we weren't going to get anywhere if I killed Tyson or Nieman. I lost it, Kate. I lost it right there in the middle of her office. I hadn't cried like that since Alexis and Paris."

"Crying helps. I cried a lot when you were missing."

"I expected Gates to reprimand me or tell me to man up or something. But do you know what she did instead?" Kate shook her head. "She came over and put her arms around me. She promised me that we were going to get you back. I'm not sure if she believed her own words, but I did. That was when I knew that she wasn't going to give up, even if it meant working a little outside of the letter of the law."

"I guess pretty soon you're going to have to tell me how you found me. But right now, I'm extremely tired."

"I'll help you with your bandages."

Kate sat on the vanity a few minutes later watching while Castle carefully unwrapped the gauze from her wrists before removing the square piece of gauze that was covering the burns on her wrists. Her eyes met his while he gently rubbed antiseptic ointment into the burns and then replaced the bandage before repeating the process on her other wrist and her ankles. She grimaced and pulled away from him while he was treating her ankles. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

"Don't apologize. I should be the one apologizing for hurting you."

"You're not hurting me. I can still hear the capacitor charging up. The first time I didn't know what it was, but after that first time, I knew what was coming next when I heard it."

"The ER doctor said fortunately the burns aren't so bad that you'll need skin grafts. He said that if they'd had you a day or two longer, that probably wouldn't be the case," he capped the ointment and put everything away before washing his hands.

Kate was still sitting on the vanity when Castle finished drying his hands. Their eyes met for a few minutes before she reached for him and pulled him against her, her lips meeting his. Kissing him was one of her favorite things to do and she never tired of it. Soon his lips were roaming over her neck and throat as she carded her fingers through his hair and brought him even closer. But the still painful bruises on her stomach soon brought things to a screeching halt. "Ow," she cried out.

"Shit, Kate," he jerked away from her. "I'm so sorry."

"Castle, don't tell me that you're sorry," she reached for him again. "I want you. I need you."

"I know and I promise that we'll make up for everything in a few days. I'll take you to the Hamptons and we'll have wine and candlelight. I want to make love to you without the fear of hurting you."

"I love you," she whispered against his lips, rubbing the skin under his eyes with her thumbs. "Promise me that you'll sleep tonight. Please?"

"I'll sleep," he murmured, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. "Come on, let's go to bed."

He helped her into bed before climbing in on his side, plumping the pillows before lying down against them. Instantly, Kate pillowed her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart while his fingers lightly trailed up and down her back.

Alexis quietly entered the loft shortly after nine. She noticed that the lights were all on in her father's office. She walked into the office, seeing that it was empty. She was about to go back to the living room when she heard her father's voice call out to her. She opened the bedroom door and poked her head inside. She smiled at the sight of Kate asleep on his chest. "Hey, sweetie," he kept his voice low. "I thought I heard you come in."

"I didn't mean to wake you," she apologized.

"I wasn't asleep. Kate's been asleep for about 45 minutes. She had a rough day, so we called it an early night."

"Get some sleep, dad."

"Don't you worry about me. Goodnight, pumpkin."

"Goodnight."

The click of the door closing roused Kate. She opened her eyes, smiling when she felt the warmth of Castle under her cheek. She propped her head up, her smile disappearing when she saw that he was lying wide-awake in the dimly lit bedroom. "Rick, you promised me that you'd sleep."

"I'll sleep. We haven't been in bed for that long."

"I'm here, Rick. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere. That's what you've been telling me for two days now every time I have a nightmare and wake up screaming in a corner. You tell me that you're here and I'm safe and that you're not going anywhere. So that's what I'm telling you now. I'm here and I'm safe and I'm not going anywhere," she gave him the smile that he loved so much; the one that made her whole face light up with joy.

"Well, when you put it that way," he smiled back, the smile that made his eyes crinkle at the corners.

"Sleep, my sweet, goofy, man-child," she kissed him softly, smiling when he returned the kiss.

Watching his eyes close, Kate sat by him until his breathing evened out. Lying back on his chest, she made a mental note to call Gates and the boys the next day. She desperately needed the rest of the story. She needed to know why Castle couldn't seem to find any peace despite the fact that she was safe and sound at home.

**A/N #3: I don't hide from the spoilers. And I don't apologize for not hiding from the spoilers. As someone posted on FB after watching the Sneak Peek: 'Wow, that looked mildly terrifying.' Yes, it did.**

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	8. A Desperate Search

**DISCLAIMERS: If this were April fool's Day, I'd say 'yes, the show now belongs to me.' But, unfortunately that isn't the case. The show still belongs to AWM and ABC Studios Productions.**

**SUMMARY: The team races against the clock to find Beckett.**

**A/N #1: I do use a bit from the sneak peek, so SPOILER ALERT. If you didn't want to watch the SP, then I suggest that you skip this chapter until after the episode airs.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 8: A Desperate Search**

_68 Hours Earlier_

"How in the hell did they get out of this precinct without anybody seeing them?" Gates asked the group that was gathered in Interrogation Room Two.

"The power outage gave them exactly what they needed? If it wasn't the weather, how did it happen?" Castle asked.

"The head of the maintenance department is looking into that right now."

"Sir, I think I know how they got out," Ryan looked at the table, where there was a barely discernible footprint on the white table. He hopped up onto the table and removed a pen from his pocked, pushing up at the ceiling tile. "Tyson climbed up and must've somehow gotten a signal to Nieman. They climbed up and made it to the nearest exit."

The group made their way out into the corridor and down the hallway toward the fire exit. They all looked up toward the ceiling where the ceiling panel was pushed over. "This is where they came down," Gates said. "Son of a bitch! Det. Esposito, how's your head?"

"I have a headache, but nothing that a couple of aspirin won't cure."

"Good. I want you and Mr. Castle to go to the Medical Examiner's Office. See if security cameras got any images of Det. Beckett being taken. Det. Ryan, I want you to go to the cab company and talk to the cab driver who picked Nieman and Tyson up. Find out where he dropped them off."

"Yes, sir," Ryan answered.

"We need to hurry."

***CCC***

Castle and Esposito raced to the OCME to search for Beckett while Ryan went to talk to the cab driver that had picked up Tyson and Nieman earlier. Castle leaped out of the car before it came to a full stop, running to where Kate's car was parked. "There doesn't appear to be any signs of a struggle," Espo noticed as he walked around the car.

"Let's see if they have any surveillance footage inside," Castle began walking toward the building, his shoulders hunched forward inside of his rain coat. The rain had stopped, but it was still damp and cold.

They went inside of the OCME and walked over to where the security guard was sitting. "Det. Javier Esposito, and this is Richard Castle," Espo flashed his badge. "Has anybody from the NYPD come in here tonight?"

"No, just morgue employees."

"How long have you been on duty?" Castle asked.

"Since six."

"Do you have cameras on the parking lot?" Espo asked.

"Yeah."

"We need to see the footage from the last hour."

"Sure, as soon as you get me a warrant," the guard was surly and belligerent.

"Listen jackhole—" Castle began, but Espo cut him off.

"One of our detectives came up here to talk to Dr. Parish, but she never made it inside of the building. We need to find out what happened to her."

"Javi, Castle," Lanie rushed toward them. "Where's Kate?"

"That's what we're trying to find out, but Barney Miller here doesn't want to cooperate," Castle's teeth were clenched so hard that his jaw ached.

"I'm sorry," the guard relented. "I have footage of the parking lot from all angles, but I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. What time did she disappear?"

"It was a little after seven o'clock," Espo said as he and Castle began watching the reversed video feed of the parking lot. "Stop! There's Beckett!"

Lanie had now joined them, as well, watching her best friend start to walk toward the building when she stopped and took her phone from her pocket. "She got a phone call from somebody. Javi, have you been able to trace her phone?"

"Her phone's off, so they can't track the GPS. Castle, look."

They watched as figure dressed all in black approached Kate. The figure was wearing a hood that was obscuring their face. Within seconds of the person walking up to Kate, they saw Kate slump toward the ground as the unknown person grabbed her before she hit the pavement. "My guess is Beckett was injected with something that knocked her out," Esposito noted.

"Look," Castle pointed to the video as a second person joined the first. Like the first person, this mysterious second person also made sure that their facial features weren't visible to the cameras. "They knew there were cameras. It has to be Nieman and Tyson. Do you have cameras facing the street?"

"No, just the building and the parking lot. But there are traffic cams nearby," the guard offered helpfully.

"We'll get access to them," Espo told him. "Come on, let's go and see if they caught anything."

"Javi, how did they get to Kate?"

"We had them at the precinct, but the power went out. They took advantage of the opportunity and got out through the ceiling panels."

"I didn't call her," the M.E. insisted.

"We know, Lanie," Castle told her. "Somehow they made a tape of your voice. Javi, we need to see those traffic cam videos."

"Lanie, we'll keep you posted," Espo promised her.

Espo and Castle were on their way to Espo's car when Castle's cell phone alerted him that he had a message. "'Sito, hold on," Castle halted his friend as he looked at his phone. "Someone just sent me a video link."

"Open it," Esposito's voice was authoritative.

With shaking fingers, Castle tapped on the link, immediately opening a feed of a room. At first there was nothing to see, but soon they saw an image of a wooden kitchen chair with Kate tied to it. "How does it feel, Castle, to know that you're going to be unable to save your wife from a fate worse than death?" They could hear Tyson's voice in the background taunting him. "Kate's going to die because of you. But she's not going to be the only victim. If you think you're so fucking smart, then I suggest that you start using that brilliant writer's mind of yours and try to stop us. Say something to your husband, Kate. Let him know how much agony you're in right now."

Kate had a gag in her mouth and all four limbs were tied to the chair with plastic zip ties, but it didn't stop her from screaming something into the gag and fighting her bonds with everything that she had. "Oh, she says to hurry, Castle."

With that the feed went dark. "Oh, Kate," tears were falling from Castle's eyes. "I'm so sorry."

"Bro," Espo's voice was rough, "we need to get this to Tory, see if she can trace it."

"We may not need to. The room looked white, clean. It's probably Nieman's clinic in Brighton Beach."

"I'll call ESU on the way and we'll check it out. Let's go."

They burst into the clinic in Brighton Beach 45 minutes later, but the captors and Kate were long gone. "I've got blood droplets," one of the ESU tech's announced, pointing to several dime sized drops of blood on the floor.

"This is where they made the video," Espo looked around the room. "She's still alive, Castle. If they'd killed her, we would've found more blood."

Castle didn't say anything. He was standing by the window where he found all of Kate's possessions displayed on the windowsill, like some kind of a macabre art piece. "That's evidence, Mr. Castle," one of the tech's warned him when Castle started to gather her things up.

"No!" He growled, his eyes feral with anger. "I'm taking them so that I give them back to Kate when we find her."

"Let it go, Ramirez," another tech told him.

"We'll dust for trace evidence, but I doubt we're going to find anything."

"No, we found exactly what they wanted us to find," Esposito continued looking around the room. "They wanted us to know that this is where they initially had her. Castle will probably get another video with another location. Come on, Castle, let's go back to the precinct and see if Tory can pick up anything from that feed that they sent you."

***CCC***

"Yeah, I remember them," the cab driver, whose name was Jamal, was talking to Ryan in the garage of the cab company. "They were a couple of weirdoes, that's how I remember them."

"Can you define 'weirdoes?'" Ryan took out his notepad.

"It was pouring rain and cold, but they were so very happy. They were in the backseat of my cab, kissing and whispering and giggling. I expected the man to start pulling the woman's clothes off and start having sex right there."

"Did you happen to hear what they seemed so happy about?"

"I do not know, but they kept saying something about another woman."

"Did you catch the woman's name that they were talking about?" Ryan asked hopefully.

"No, they said that she was going to be surprised when she saw them. Because she thought that they were in jail. The man said that 'boy, will she be surprised.'"

"Jamal, do you remember where you dropped them off at?"

"Yes. I dropped them off on East 28th Street. At first they give me an address on East 26th Street, but when we were almost there, the woman asked for me to drop them off on East 28th Street instead. They gave their fare and tipped me 50 dollars, so I was not going to argue. I was just glad to get them out of my cab."

"Do you remember the exact address on East 26th Street where they originally wanted to go?" 

"I will check," Jamal pulled up his call log on his tablet. "Yes, it was 421."

"Thank you, Jamal. Can I talk to you again if I have more questions?"

"Yes, of course. These people are very bad, aren't they?"

"Yes, they are," Ryan answered.

***CCC***

_66 Hours Earlier_

"Kate? Oh, Kate? It's time for you to wake up."

Kate's eyes felt like they weighed a ton, but the light slaps on her face were irritating her. She slowly opened her eyes to find a nightmare looming over her. Bright blue eyes and red hair that didn't belong to either her mother-in-law or her stepdaughter. She tried to scream, but there was a gag in her mouth. "Watch her," she heard Tyson's voice nearby. "She's a feisty one."

"Oh, I think that I can control her easily enough," Kelly Nieman's voice was treacly sweet.

Kate knew that she wasn't going to go down, not without one hell of a fight. She carefully tested the waters, realizing that she wasn't tied down any longer. She knew the trick was waiting for the right moment. "I wasn't lying when I said that you were truly beautiful. You're not perfect, and I was willing to fix that. Once. Tell me something. Does Castle tell you that you're beautiful? Does he whisper those words to you when he's making love to you?"

Kate let out a shriek against her gag and began to fight violently. Her first kick caught the doctor off guard, knocking her away from the gurney that she was lying on. Kate then leaped off of the gurney, feeling Tyson grab her around the waist as she continued kicking at Nieman, getting several good blows in before Nieman got her bearings and began fighting back. Kate gasped at the pain of the blows that were raining down all over her body. The doctor had obviously taken her own fair share of self-defense classes. Within minutes, Kate was bruised and battered, unable to fight any longer due to the sedative that was still coursing through her body.

"I told you that you should've restrained her," Tyson warned.

"I thought the sedatives would be enough."

"Well, you thought wrong."

"The next part of our plan will be ready in about an hour. I just have a few last minute touches. Then you can do what you do so well," Dr. Nieman finished restraining Kate before turning and touching her index finger to Tyson's lips.

"Can I see her first?"

"Go ahead. I think you'll find her quite effective." Nieman watched as Tyson walked to a gurney in a far corner of the dilapidated warehouse where they were now hiding. "So, what do you think?"

"Have I ever told you how gifted you are?" He turned from the gurney and gave his partner a chilling smile.

"I've heard about how gifted I am my entire life."

"Are you going to wake our guest up for the show? It's only fair that she should witness how she's eventually going to die."

"I hadn't thought about that, but you're probably right. I'll start bringing Kate around in a short while so that she can see just what hell we're going to put her husband and family through."

***CCC***

"The cab driver said that he dropped them off on East 28th Street, two blocks from the OCME. He said they were all over each other in the back of the cab, giggling and whispering something about meeting a woman. They said that the woman was going to be surprised when she saw them because she thought that they were in jail."

Castle was sitting in Kate's chair with his fingers steepled over his lips. He was vaguely listening to Ryan's report of his meeting with the cab driver, but in reality his thoughts were completely on Kate and what she had to be going through. It made him wish that Tyson had just killed him that night in the motel. If he had, none of this would be happening now. "Mr. Castle?" He looked up to find Capt. Gates standing by the desk. "Would you like some coffee?"

"No," he shook his head. "I should go home and let my mother and Alexis know what's going on."

"We've sent a detail to your loft in case Tyson and Nieman try to get into your home."

"Have you talked to my mother and daughter?"

"I've just told them that there have been some developments in the investigation."

"So, they don't know about Kate?"

"No, not yet. We're going to get her back, Mr. Castle. Whatever it takes."

"If anything comes up, call me on Kate's phone. Tory still has mine," he got up and started to walk toward the elevator, looking 20 years older in just a short time.

"Mr. Castle?" Castle wearily turned around, his eyes red rimmed and watery. "Don't think about doing anything stupid."

"No, sir. After all, I don't know where they are. But if I knew, let's just say that I'll do whatever it takes also."

Capt. Gates watched him round the corner and disappear from sight. "Esposito! Ryan!"

"Yes, sir?" Both men came over to where their captain was still standing by Beckett's desk.

"I want the two of you to sit on Tyson's apartment. It isn't likely that he'll show up there, but if he does, I want you two waiting. Because I have a feeling that Mr. Castle is also going to be waiting for him."

The doorman in front of Castle's apartment building on Broome Street opened the door when Castle approached the entrance. "Have the police talked to you?" He asked.

"Yes, sir. They showed us pictures of a man and a woman and told us to call if they show up here."

"Thanks, Eduardo."

"You're welcome, Mr. Castle."

When he came around the corner from the elevator to his door with his key in his hand, he saw two police officers standing on either side of the corridor. He didn't say anything; he simply inserted his key in the lock and walked into his apartment.

"Dad!"

"Richard!"

Both of the other women in his life ran at him, throwing themselves into his embrace. "Dad, what's going on? Why do we have guards by the door?" Alexis asked.

"Listen to me," he led them over to the sofa and sat down, as they took a seat on either side of him. "Earlier tonight, Tyson and Nieman took Kate."

"Oh god, Richard," Martha gasped as Alexis burst into tears.

"Alexis, shhh," he wrapped his arms around her, cradling her against him. "I don't know where she is, but every cop in the city is looking for her. I wanted you to hear what was going on from me and not from some television reporter. I don't want either of you girls to go anywhere until we have them in custody. The doormen have pictures of Nieman and Tyson, so they're not going to get in. If anybody calls and tells you anything about me, call the precinct and get the story verified. A ruse was how they were able to get Kate."

"How did they do it?" Alexis asked.

"They had Lanie's voice on tape. They made it sound like a regular call from her saying that she had information on a case. Kate went to the OCME and they were able to grab her."

"I hate to even think of what she's going through," Martha shuddered at the thought.

"Kate's tough," Alexis declared stubbornly. "She can kick their asses any day of the week."

"Yeah, she can, sweetie," Castle planted a tender kiss to her forehead. "I'm going to keep Kate's phone and her ring, but I'm going to put her other things away."

"Richard, how did you get Katherine's things?"

Instead of answering, he went into his office, where he thought about stashing her gun in his safe, but instead, stuck it under his jacket. He then went into the bedroom where he put Kate's dads' watch inside of the wooden box with the picture of her parents' on the lid before leaving the bedroom. "Dad, Gram asked you how you got Kate's things."

"They sent me a video. At first they were holding her in Dr. Nieman's clinic in Brighton Beach, but by the time we got there, they were already gone. They left her things behind. I need to get back and help them find her. Lock the door behind me and don't open it to anybody," he kissed his mother and his daughter before leaving the apartment.

Castle left the building and walked over to his Buick which was still parked on the street. He got behind the wheel and started the car up, letting the engine idle for a few minutes while he tried to collect his thoughts. Instead of driving to the precinct, he drove to the apartment Tyson had shared with Stephanie Fullerton, wondering if the psycho would come home. He also wondered if Capt. Gates would have the same idea and send the boys to sit on the place. He got out of his car looking around for the familiar red car of the boys before walking into the apartment building and up to Apartment 518. Taking a chance, he rapped on the door.

Castle wasn't sure what he was expecting, but he certainly wasn't expecting his foe to open the door. "Oh, no. No, no, no," Tyson began trying to close the door, but Castle kicked it in, hitting him in the face, causing blood to pour from a cut by his eye.

"Where is she?" Castle growled, advancing on the man who was desperately trying to crawl away from him. "Is she even still alive?"

"Dude, I don't have her. That wasn't me. That was her."

"Who? Nieman?"

"Yeah, she's the one obsessed with your wife. I helped her escape custody, but that's where we parted ways."

"I don't believe you," Castle removed Kate's gun from behind him, pointing it right between Tyson's eyes. "I'm going to ask you again, _where is she_?"

Tyson eyed a board with several nails sticking out of it. Castle saw it and tried to block the blow, but Tyson was quicker, bashing the board into Castle's arm before making his way to the fire escape. Castle took off after him just as the rain started pouring down again. When they reached the ground, Tyson picked up more debris and hurled it at the man chasing him.

Tyson weaved and dodged, putting distance between himself and Castle. Suddenly red and blue lights were everywhere, passing Castle and Tyson on the street. A feeling of foreboding swept over Castle's body as he turned to see where the lights were heading. The last of the lights finally passed him by and he realized that he'd lost Tyson's trail. Heaving for breath and his arm aching horribly, Castle headed back to his car. The second that he got inside and started it, Kate's phone rang. He wondered for a moment who was calling on her phone until he remembered that Tory still had his phone. He unlocked the screen and paused to catch his breath. "Castle."

"Castle, it's Esposito. Castle, there's no easy way of saying this . . . bro, they found a body."

"Where?" Castle's heart was pounding in his ears.

"East 30th."

"Is it her?"

"Bro?"

"_Is it Kate_?" He asked again.

"Just get here," the line went dead.

***CCC***

The light swinging rhythmically from the ceiling was hypnotizing her. She felt so woozy, like she was on some kind of a crazy merry-go-round. She remembered riding the merry-go-round when she was small. Her dad would take her to the park near their house and she'd beg him to make it go faster.

Kate's mind was whirling with all kinds of crazy thoughts. She looked to her right where she thought that woman had been, but there was nothing but empty space now. Had it been a dream? Or had she really watched in horror while Jerry Tyson choked the life out of a woman who looked just like her? She had tried to look away, but Nieman had held a scalpel to her face and threatened to cut her eyes out if she looked away again. "Do you really think Castle will really still love you when you no longer have those lovely, doe eyes?" She'd taunted her.

The woman had thrashed and kicked while Tyson methodically pulled a strand of blue nylon cord tighter and tighter, until her struggles eventually ceased. Kate had been to hundreds of murder scenes, but this was the first time she could remember actually seeing a murder being committed. It was repulsive. She also knew that it was a message to Rick. This was the opening act. Kate knew that it was only a matter of time before she found Tyson on top of her with that cord around her neck, pulling until the life left her body. She wondered how much time she had left. An hour, two? A part of her wanted it to be over just so she wouldn't have to live in fearful anticipation of that final moment. She wondered if it had been like this for her mother at the end. Or if it had been quick and painless.

***CCC***

Castle got out of his car at the crime scene on East 30th Street, just blocks from where Kate had last been seen. The rain quickly drenched him as he walked toward Lanie, Espo, and Ryan, who was standing beside a yellow sheet covered body on a gurney. All three of them had wet eyes, but Castle knew that could also be from the rain. Ryan noticed him holding his arm, which was still bleeding through the leather of his jacket. "Castle, I'm so sorry," Lanie whispered.

"Let me see her, Lanie," his voice was hoarse and raw.

Lanie pulled the sheet back, revealing chestnut hair and those fabulous cheekbones. She was wearing the white turtleneck that she'd been wearing earlier at the precinct. His three friends watched him as his fingers traveled under the shirt, his fingers mapping the body that he knew so well. "It's not her," he looked at them.

"Castle, I know that it's hard—" Lanie started to say, but Castle cut her off.

"Lanie, I've slept beside Kate every night for almost three years. Believe me when I said that I have worshipped her body. I know her body better than I know my own and I'm telling you that this _isn't _her. This is Kelly Nieman and Jerry Tyson's handy work."

"Okay, sweetie. I'll get her to the lab and run DNA."

"Lanie, you don't have to run DNA. Kate has a thoracotomy scar and it isn't there."

"Then who the hell is this?" Espo asked.

"I don't know. I had Tyson and he got away."

"Wait! You had—Bro, are you insane?" Espo shouted.

"Guys, let me get this girl to the morgue so that I can find out who she really is," Lanie motioned to her assistant.

"I'm surprised you two weren't there. I thought Gates would have the same idea that I had. Tyson must've dumped this girl and then went to his apartment."

"We were on our way to his apartment and we got the call about the body. Is Tyson what happened to your arm?" Ryan asked.

"Yeah, but I'm what happened to his face when you find him."

"Let's get you checked out and then you can tell us the whole story."

***CCC***

Kate was dreaming that she and Castle were on their favorite stretch of beach at the Hamptons, his fingers doing absolutely crazy things to her body. The sun was so bright that she needed her sunglasses. But when she reached for them, she couldn't move her hand. "Oh good, you're awake again," she opened her eyes to find Kelly Nieman standing over her. "I'm thinking that right about now, your husband is going to receive news that the police have found a body." Kate began mumbling against her gag, so Kelly pulled it free. "What were you saying? It's hard to understand you with that gag in your mouth."

"You're never going to get away with this," Kate hissed.

"He was never supposed to come back, Kate. You were never supposed to have married him. You were supposed to spend the rest of your life wondering if he had really left you at the altar."

"You did this to him?"

"Well, not alone, of course. I have plans that are going to destroy him. But they're going to destroy you, too. If I let you live, he's never going to look at you the same way again. He'll always have this look of pity when he looks at you. You see, I have the ability to make you perfect; but I also have the ability to make you so hideous that children will run from you in terror. Even your own children, should Castle decide that he does want to keep you around."

"There's a special place in hell for people like you," Kate hissed.

"Oh, please. I've heard all that I care to from you," she replaced the gag in Kate's mouth, turning when she heard footsteps behind her. "What in the hell happened to you?" Kate tried to crane her neck to see what Nieman was talking about, but she was too weak and tired to move.

"Let me kill her now!" Tyson roared.

"In time. Let me take care of your face. How did this happen?"

"Castle is how this happened. If you'd let me kill her like I'm asking you to, this would all be over."

"You let Castle find you? Are you crazy? What in the hell were you thinking?"

"Kelly, let me kill her. The _real _her, not these stupid lookalikes."

"In time," Kelly promised him. "In time, we'll both get exactly what we want."

**A/N #3: This chapter didn't go as well as I'd wanted it to. I guess because I'm so ramped up about 'Castle' airing in an hour. I promise the next chapter will be better.**

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	9. A Small Glimmer of Light

**DISCLAIMERS: No, nothing belongs to me, but I'm ever hopeful.**

**SUMMARY: The boys and Capt. Gates visit Kate while she tries to learn more about what happened during her abduction.**

**A/N #1: 'Reckoning' had to be the most awesome 'Castle' episode ever! I was on the edge of my seat the entire hour. Badass Castle and Beckett are quite the team. And we have seen the last of Jerry Tyson and Dr. Kelly Nieman. Hooray!**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 9: A Small Glimmer of Light**

Kate awoke from a deep dreamless sleep and found herself staring into gray fur where her husband should've been. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, wondering if maybe she was dreaming, after all. But, no. It wasn't a dream. Taking residence on Castle's side of the bed was the biggest stuffed elephant she'd ever seen in her life. It looked like one of those animals that you'd win as a prize at a carnival. Propped up in front of the large stuffed pachyderm was an envelope with her name written on it in Castle's handwriting. Smiling, she took the envelope and opened it, smiling when she read his words.

_I'm so sorry that we missed Valentine's Day_

_I didn't get you any sexy lingerie this year_

_But will you still be my Valentine?_

_I love you,_

_Rick_

She was still smiling with her fingers on her lips when she got the feeling that she was no longer alone. Her eyes went to the doorway and Castle, who was leaning against the door jamb with a smile of his own lighting up his eyes. "A stuffed elephant, Castle? What am I, eight?" She teased, holding her arms out to him.

"I saw that in the window of FAO Schwarz and it screamed your name," he hovered over her, his hands holding his weight off of her before he kissed her good morning. "We missed Valentine's Day," his expression was sober.

"I know, but we'll make up for it when we go to the Hamptons," she brushed a lock of hair from his forehead. "When can we leave?"

"When do you see Dr. Carson again?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"After you get out of the doctor's office, we'll leave for the Hamptons. However, the weatherman is forecasting snow."

"Is that a problem?" Kate asked. Always before, they'd gone to the beach house during the summer and early fall before the weather took a turn.

"Not necessarily. If we get snowed in, it could get romantic," he smiled. "I'll call Rosie and have her make sure that the house is clean and that we have some food."

"I love my elephant," she glanced over at the huge stuffed toy before moving up to kiss him softly, her legs scissoring across his calves.

"Um Kate," he murmured, trying to pull away from her, but her grip on him was strong. "I promise that we'll have lots of sex when we go away."

"Why not now?"

"Kate, you're still so bruised up," he felt her legs drop as he rolled off of her. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Castle, we can use other positions," she nibbled on his earlobe. "You know how I like being on top."

"I know, honey."

"Then what's the problem?" She sat up, folding her arms over her chest.

"I want to take things slow. I want to erase every second of those two days."

"Castle, I know that you're scared that I'm going to disappear—"

"I know you're not going anywhere," he protested, but she cut him off.

"You don't let me out of your sight for more than a few minutes at a time; I know that you don't sleep at night because you feel like you need to keep watch over me. Castle, Nieman's dead and from I understand, Tyson's going to be soon. There's no more danger. They can't hurt us. They can't hurt _me_. What else happened that you aren't telling me?"

"I can't, Kate. Not yet."

"Can I ask you one question?" Her eyes were puzzled and Castle could tell that she was mulling over something in her head. "There's still so much that didn't feel real, but was there another murder committed by Tyson while I was missing?"

"Yeah. The night that I confronted Tyson in his apartment, he had just dumped a woman's body in an alley near the OCME. She'd had surgery to resemble you. But her prints weren't in the system and we still don't know who she is. Why do you ask?"

"Oh my god," Kate jumped off of the bed and rushed to the bathroom. Within seconds, Castle could hear the sounds of her being violently ill.

"Kate!" He ran into the bathroom, where his wife was still kneeling over the toilet, heaving into the bowl. He bent down and pulled her hair back until she was finished. "Are you okay?"

He handed her a towel and helped her to her feet. She rinsed her mouth and splashed some water on her face before drying off with the towel. "I thought that it was a dream," her voice was a hoarse whisper. "I woke up and there was a gurney next to me. There was a woman strapped to it much like I was. And then Tyson was on top of her, wrapping a rope around her neck. Castle, I tried to look away," she began to cry. "I tried, but Nieman put a scalpel to my eyes and threatened to cut my eyes out if I looked away again! She said that she would make it so that children would run from me in horror."

"Oh god, Kate," he wrapped his arms around her, feeling her sag against his chest.

"Richard?" They turned to find Martha standing in the bathroom doorway, holding the phone. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Capt. Gates is on the phone. She wants to talk to either you or Kate."

"Thank you, mother," Castle took the phone. "Captain Gates?"

"Good morning, Mr. Castle. I'm calling to see if it would be possible for me and the rest of the team to possibly talk to Det. Beckett today."

"Let me ask her," he put his hand over the phone. "Do you feel up to talking about what happened?"

"I can talk about what I remember."

"Capt. Gates, there are still some holes, but Kate said she can tell you what she remembers."

"Okay. Tell her that we'll be there in about an hour."

"Yes, sir. I will," he ended the call and handed the phone back to Martha. "Well, seeing as how we're going to be having company, I guess we should get dressed."

"You can get dressed if you want. I'll take a shower, but I'm wearing my jammies," she stroked his cheek tenderly.

An hour later, Castle was making coffee while Kate showered. He was thinking about their upcoming trip to the Hamptons. Thinking of what he needed to do, he called his cleaning service. "Hi, this is Rick Castle. I need to arrange for Rosie or Angela to clean my home in the Hamptons. I'm bringing my wife up there tomorrow for a few days. Great, thank you very much." The doorbell rang just as he was finishing his call. He opened the door to find Ryan, Esposito, and Capt. Gates standing there. "Hi, come on in. Beckett's in the shower, but she should be out in a few minutes. Can I get anybody some coffee?"

After setting cups out for coffee, the four of them took seats in the living room. "How's Beckett doing?" Gates took a sip of her coffee.

"She remembers bits and pieces, but some of the memories don't feel real to her."

Kate walked into the room, suddenly feeling uncomfortable when she felt everybody's eyes on her. She was dressed in a pair of gray sweats and a NYPD sweatshirt that appeared five times too big, seeming to swallow her up. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail and her feet were bare. She sat down next to Castle and pulled her feet up under her. She hadn't replaced the gauze on her wrists and ankles, and her guests could still see the vivid burns on the insides of her wrists. "I don't know how you want to do this," she stared down at her fingers, making a face at how ugly her broken nails still appeared.

"Why don't we start with the night you were abducted," Gates began. "Do you remember anything about that night?"

"My phone rang," she bit her lip. "When I answered it, it was that song again."

"What song?" Esposito asked.

"The one on the flash drive that Nieman had left for me and Castle last year when she vanished. I felt a stab in my arm, but I don't remember anything after that."

"What's the next thing that you do remember?" Gates asked.

"Someone woke me up. When I opened my eyes, they were both standing there."

"Tyson and Nieman?"

"Yeah. I was in and out. I don't know what was real and what wasn't," her eyes watered, her fingers shaking when she angrily wiped the tears away. "Tyson killed a woman right next to me and Nieman forced me to watch. I thought that it was a dream . . . or a nightmare."

"Beckett, did either of them say anything to you?" Ryan asked.

"I don't remember him saying anything, but she had a lot to say," she took a deep breath, smiling when she felt Castle put his hand on her leg, rubbing gently. "She told me that she was going to carve my face up so that Castle would never look at me again. She said that children would run in terror when they saw me. That seemed to be her favorite little game. She also kept saying that Castle was never supposed to have come back. She said that I was supposed to wonder for the rest of my life why he left me at the altar that day. My dad told me that she's dead. Is that true?"

"It's true. The latest word on Tyson is he's expected to die at any time," Esposito told the two of them.

"He didn't say much, but he was the one who burned me. I didn't know what the noise was, at first, but they laughed when the first volts hit me. I had a gag in my mouth, but I still screamed. They laughed because I . . . because . . . no, I can't," she jumped up from the sofa and fled from the room.

"I'm sorry," Castle sighed deeply.

"How much has she told you?" Gates wanted to know.

"Not much. Like I told you earlier, she isn't sure what's real and what isn't. It comes out in fits and starts. But I've learned with Beckett that it's best to let her talk at her own pace. If I push, she just shuts down."

"What about her therapist?"

"She still won't call him. Is 1PP pushing for her statement?"

"No. They understand that under the circumstances, she's probably not ready."

"She's seeing the doctor who treated her tomorrow and then I'm going to take her out of the city for a few days. Hopefully, the relaxation will help."

"When you bring her back, have her call me," Gates stood up. "Thank you for the coffee."

"We'll be down in a few minutes, sir," Ryan said as Castle walked the captain to the door. "Castle, we're sorry. We didn't mean to upset Beckett. We know that she's been through hell."

"Ryan, it's not your fault. Beckett just wants things to be normal again and it's hard for her to understand that things are far from normal right now."

"We'll talk to you in a few days, bro," Espo said as he motioned for Ryan to follow him.

Castle walked them to the door and chatted with them for a few minutes before they left and he closed the door behind them. He then walked back to their bedroom to find Kate. At first, he didn't see her anywhere, but he could hear her sniffling. He walked around to her side of the bed and found her huddled on the floor beside her nightstand. "Hey, what're you doing down here?" He sat down beside her, wincing when his bad knee popped loudly. "You know, you don't have to talk about anything that happened if you don't want to. We can do this at your pace."

"They were laughing at me, Castle, and I just wanted to die," she put her head against the wall and began to cry loudly. "I see her face every time I close my eyes! I just want her face to go away!"

"Come here," he slipped his arm around her shoulders, holding her close while she continued to cry. He hated seeing how much pain she was in. If he could take her pain away, he would. He looked up at the bed where the stuff elephant was still perched on his side of the bed. "Hey, what're you going to call him?" He asked, changing the subject.

"Who?" She moved back and stared at him in confusion.

"Your new elephant," he pointed toward the bed. "He deserves a great name."

"Well," she wiped her face, "you did give him to me for Valentine's Day, so how about Valentino?"

"Valentino's a good name. I like it," he kissed her temple.

"I'm sorry for being so emotional."

"You don't owe me an apology. I still see Tyson's face, especially after that night on the bridge. But do you know what I do so that I stop seeing him?"

"No. What?"

"I open my eyes and look at you," he smiled.

"I never thanked you for coming to get me. Thank you," she touched her fingers to his lips before kissing him.

"Always," he replied, kissing her softly a second time.

They continued to sit quietly on the floor for several minutes. "I was thinking that maybe we could put Valentino in the nursery some day," she smiled at him.

"You still want to have a baby?" He was surprised by her revelation, especially in light of everything that had happened to her.

"No."

"_No?"_

"I want to have _your _baby," she clarified.

"Well, I'm certainly open to discussing it."

"I didn't think it would be something that we would need to discuss, Castle. A few days ago, this was something that I thought you were on board for."

"A few days ago, I didn't have any fears about almost losing you to two serial killers, either."

"Castle," she turned her body so that she was sitting directly across from him. "Hey? There are always going to be bad guys out there. We're always going to be slaying dragons. And like you told me, there really isn't a perfect time to have a baby. But I will promise you this much. When the time comes and I do get pregnant, I will pull myself out of the field. I promise that I won't leave you to raise a second child alone. I really want to be a mom, Castle. I'd love nothing more than to hear our son call me 'mommy.'"

"Like I said, I'm open to discussing it. You know that I can never deny you anything," he smiled. "When are you going to tell me the rest of the story, Kate?" His eyes were suddenly serious. "What happened a while ago? Why did you get so upset?"

"I just don't like remembering it."

"Kate, I've known you and loved you for a very long time. I know that there's more to it than that."

"I can't, Castle," she got up from the floor. "Please don't ask me again."

Watching her walk from the room, Castle felt the same overwhelming sense of pain and helplessness that he'd felt while she was missing. He knew that Tyson and Nieman had tortured her and humiliated her, taunted her, trying to break her. He also remembered the condition that Kate had been in when they'd found her. She'd been lying in her own filth in torn, tattered clothes on a vermin infested mattress in an icy cold warehouse. He knew that those imbedded memories was one reason why she'd been taking two or more showers a day since returning home. He found himself clenching and unclenching his fists, the anger once again trying to take him over the edge. He was angry that neither of them had really suffered like Kate had. Like he had. But at least he had the satisfaction of knowing that they'd both soon be burning in hell.

**A/N #2: I struggled a little with this chapter. **

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	10. An Escalating Madness

**DISCLAIMERS: Nope, I still don't own the show.**

**SUMMARY: Nieman and Tyson take their torture of Kate to the next level, as they taunt Castle with new videos.**

**A/N #1: This chapter is going to be pretty intense, which will account for the M rating.**

**A/N #2: This chapter is for everybody who has been PM'ing me and asking me what in the hell Tyson and Nieman did to Beckett. I've been getting some interesting guesses, which just make me clap my hands in glee and laugh maniacally while sitting in front of my laptop.**

**A/N #3: This chapter will include spoilers from 'Reckoning.' There were just too many scenes that were too good not to use the dialogue.**

**A/N #4: There will be a time jump in this chapter.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 10: An Escalating Madness**

_50 Hours Earlier_

"I thought that you might be thirsty," Dr. Nieman appeared at Kate's side holding a plastic bottle in her hands. Kate shrank back from her in terror, making the doctor chuckle. "Relax, Detective. It's just water. If I were going to poison you, I would've done it by now. Believe me; we have other plans in mind for you. Now, I'm going to remove the gag to give you some water. Please don't scream. It's tedious and nobody's going to hear you."

Kate stretched out her jaw when the gag was removed. Her captor waited a moment before placing the bottle to her lips. Kate drank greedily, some of the water escaping her lips and running down her chin, soaking the thin t-shirt that she was now wearing. All too soon, Nieman took the bottle away and replaced the gag in Kate's mouth.

Kate wasn't sure how long she'd been here now. Time had no meaning. She knew that Castle and her friends at the 12th were searching for her. She knew also that she'd been drugged by something. She felt so disoriented and when she slept, her sleep was filled with dark dreams. And when she was awake, nothing felt real. She knew that she was secured to a table and that there was a bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. Its rhythmic swaying cast terrifying shadows on the walls and ceiling.

She heard footsteps and the sound of wheels on the floor. She began to feel woozy and found herself wondering if there had been something in the water bottle she'd just drank from. Suddenly, she opened her eyes to find Nieman standing over her again with that casual smirk plastered on her face. "My mother had a nervous breakdown when I was a little girl," she began relating her tale to Kate. "She had to be hospitalized and I learned that they did electroshock therapy on her. It fascinated me; the effect of electricity on the human body. It changed my mother. When she came home, she was never the same."

"You talk too much. Let's just get on with it already so that we can send Castle another video," Tyson's voice spoke from the end of the gurney.

Kate began to tug on the restraints holding her firmly to the table, screaming and moaning behind the gag. "Relax, Detective. It's not going to do you any good to fight. In fact, you'll probably just make things worse if you struggle."

Kate just began to fight harder. What in the hell were they going to do to her? She heard a whirring sound, a sound that gradually got louder, increasing her terror. Suddenly, a jolt ripped through her body from two bare wires that Tyson had placed on the insides of her ankles. It felt like a fire was spreading through her body. Her back arched off of the table and her hands clenched in the restraints. "Okay, enough," Nieman said as the feeling stopped.

"You'd better clean her up," Kate heard Tyson's voice through her pain-filled brain. "It looks like she pissed all over herself."

The last sound Kate heard before she mercifully passed out were her two captors laughing at her. She knew that she had to find a way to get out of this before they killed her.

***CCC***

Castle was sitting in the precinct, hours after confronting Tyson in his apartment. The boys had taken him to the ER where his arm was treated and he was given a tetanus shot as a precaution. Kate had been missing for eight hours and they were no closer to finding her than they had been when she first disappeared.

He looked up, surprised to see Capt. Gates standing in front of him holding a cup of coffee. She then sat down in his usual chair since he was sitting in Beckett's. "When I first took over as captain, I didn't understand what it was that Beckett saw in you. When I asked her, she told me that she saw the evidence, but you saw the story. You let Tyson get inside of your head. You need to get inside of his head. What's his story? What's his next move? You need to go back and get his story. Find his story and you'll find Beckett."

"What about her?" He asked, referring to Nieman.

"It probably wouldn't hurt to find her story, too."

Tory had given him his phone several hours earlier, after determining that the video he'd received had come from a burner cell. He pulled it from his pocket when he heard it ring, instantly recognizing the number that he'd gotten the video from earlier. "Captain! It's them!" He called out.

Gates motioned for him to wait before answering. After an eternity, she gave him the 'go' to answer the phone. "Castle," his voice was harsh.

"Took you long enough, Castle," Tyson's voice came over the line. "You guys have to know by now that I'm using a burner phone. Tracing the call is pointless."

"Tyson, where is she?"

"She's alive, but that's all that I'm saying for right now."

"Let her go, Tyson. Let her go and take me instead."

"What fun would that be? If I take you, I only get to kill you once. This way, I get to kill you over and over again. Maybe when we get done with your girl, we'll go after your mother and then your baby girl. But I didn't call to make small talk. I sent you another video. You should have it by now."

The line went dead and Castle checked his phone, seeing that he had another text with a link. This video showed Kate strapped to a surgeon's table, a gag in her mouth and her eyes wide and wild. Castle's vision went blurry when he saw her struggling against her bonds. Suddenly her back bowed and she jerked harder than ever. "What in the hell are they doing to you, Kate?" He whispered, his hand flying to his mouth.

"You need to hurry, Castle," Tyson's face and voice soon filled the screen on Castle's phone. I'm not sure how much longer Beckett's going to be able to hang on."

The screen went black and Castle lowered his phone to Beckett's desk with shaking hands. "We're not going to find her," he whispered. "We're not going to get to her in time."

"Castle, can you look at the video again?" Tory asked. His bleak eyes told her that was the last thing that he wanted to do. "Do you mind if I look at it? I think I might've seen something."

"Yeah, go ahead," Castle handed the phone to the young woman.

Gates and the boys situated themselves around Beckett's desk. "Mr. Castle, you need to take the game to them."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ryan was puzzled.

"That means that we turn the tables on their asses. Right now, they think that they're in charge. We let them continue to think that they're in charge, but we take control," Espo filled his partner in.

"Exactly," Gates confirmed. "Find out everything that you can about both Tyson and Nieman. Go back as far as you need to. Let's move, people. We need to find Beckett before Tyson decides that she's expendable."

"He won't kill her until he has me," Castle stated. "He wants me to watch her die. He knows that will definitely destroy me."

***CCC***

_47 hours earlier_

Kate was dreaming of the day that she'd married Castle. The sunset had been so beautiful and the look on his face when he saw her walking across the grass on her father's arm was the look of a man who was head over heels in love. She was head over heels in love with him, too. She'd never been in love with anybody the way that she loved Castle.

She could remember the way that his fingers and his lips trailed over her body that evening when they made love for the first time as husband and wife. She could still feel them now and she slowly opened her eyes to find Nieman standing next to her. "How are you feeling, Kate? Are you dreaming a lot? I think that you were having pleasant dreams the way that you were smiling. Were you dreaming about Castle? I'm not sure that he's going to get to you in time, Kate. How are you feeling, Kate? Are you feeling sleepy? Are you seeing things that aren't really there?"

Kate heard the same whine that she'd heard earlier and began to struggle, knowing that they were about to electrocute her again. "No, no, no," she began to cry out against the gag.

"It'll all end soon, Detective. And we'll make sure that we save the best for last," Nieman's voice was sickening as she nodded her head.

Kate screamed out when she felt another burst of electricity go through her body. She felt a warm wetness cascade down her legs as her bladder let go just as it had earlier. The last thing she heard before she once again lost consciousness was her captors laughing at her humiliation.

***CCC***

"I didn't see much from the video, but there's a bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling," Tory pointed out to them. "You can make out the shadow of it on the wall. From what I was able to determine, it's pretty bare bones. It appears that the only items of furniture are the surgeon's table and most likely a video camera. My guess is that they're probably recording Beckett's whole ordeal for their amusement, but are sending you bits of it to taunt you."

"Can you tell where she's being held?" Gates asked.

"No, sir. Not yet. My guess from the look of the walls is either a warehouse or an industrial building. I've listened to the video and eliminated different noises. There aren't any particular background noises that I could differentiate. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Tory," Castle's voice was rough. "I'm sure that they'll be sending me another video after they torture Kate some more. Maybe you'll get lucky then."

With that, Castle turned and went back out to the bullpen. Ryan and Esposito looked at each other before following him back over to Beckett's desk, where they found him sitting there, holding her elephant family in his hands. "Please don't come over here and tell me that we're going to find her. That she's going to be all right."

"Bro, Beckett's tough. If anybody can find a way to get out of this, she can. This is the same woman who killed two of Bracken's thugs when she was drunk out of her mind," Espo reminded him.

"She wasn't strapped down to a table having god only knows what done to her."

"Castle, I'm sorry," Ryan said as the other two men stared at him. "If I'd been a little faster that night in the hotel room, we would've had him and none of this would be happening now."

"Kevin, that wasn't your fault. That was all on Tyson," Castle told him, replacing the elephants back where Kate always kept them. "Do you remember the day she found the tape?"

"How can I forget?" Espo scoffed. "I thought we were all on our way to jail that day."

"That was the day that we both realized that we could finally be happy. It just seems like every time we find our happiness, something comes along to derail it. First my disappearing for two months and now this. Just once, I'd like to see her happy without something coming along to ruin it."

"When's the last time you got some sleep?" Espo asked.

"No," Castle shook his head. "I'll sleep when we find Kate."

"Castle . . . Rick, you're not going to be of any use in the investigation if you're dead on your feet," Ryan told him. "Go grab some sack time on the couch in the break room. We'll wake you if anything comes up."

***CCC***

_43 hour earlier_

Kate loved taking a bath with Castle. His arms would wrap around her so protectively and then he'd lather up her nylon bath sponge and carefully wash every single inch of her. Of course the baths usually ended in much more erotic activities, but he always referred to it as 'getting dirty while they were getting clean.'

She sighed deeply as she felt warm water cascade over her thighs. Then she suddenly jolted awake, biting back a scream when she saw the cold blue eyes of Kelly Nieman smiling down at her. "I thought that you might enjoy a sponge bath, because quite frankly, you were starting to get a little ripe. I guess peeing on yourself will have that effect. Don't worry, Detective, I'll have you nice and clean in no time."

"Why don't you just kill me and get it over with?" Kate hissed, grateful to have the dreaded gag out of her mouth for the time being.

"What would be the fun in that? If I wanted to kill you, you'd already be dead. Let's get you into some dry clothes, shall we?"

Kate's whole body felt boneless as she felt the doctor maneuver her body into a pair of scrub pants. When she felt a t-shirt being pulled over her head, Kate lifted up one of her arms in an attempt to fight back. "Ah, ah, ah," the doctor grabbed Kate's wrist. "If you don't want more electro-shock, I would advise against doing that again. Am I clear?"

"How long are you going to play this game?"

"Don't worry," she smiled as she once again restrained Kate's wrists and ankles to the table. "I assure you that the end game is coming soon. How about some more water?"

"No," Kate shook her head, trying to avoid the water bottle that was being thrust between her lips.

"Kate, please don't make this more difficult than it needs to be. If need be, I can always use an IV. You'll discover that I'm much more agreeable if you don't fight me. Now, open up."

Kate didn't know what was in the water, but within minutes everything became out of focus. She screamed when she saw a red witch descending from the ceiling. The screaming stopped when Nieman stuffed the gag into her mouth once again.

"How's our patient?" She smiled when she heard her partner's voice.

"Perfect. The hallucinations have started."

***CCC***

_27 Hours Earlier_

"Castle! Castle! Wake up!" Castle slowly opened his eyes to find Ryan standing over him, a look of excitement written all over his face. "We think we might have something on Beckett's location."

Castle sat up and glanced at his watch, surprised that he'd actually slept for as long as he had. He scrubbed his hands over his face before getting up and following Ryan into the bullpen. "We just got Nieman's financials back," Esposito told the group gathered around his desk. "Four months ago, she purchased a building in the industrial area in the hopes of turning it into a training center for these women that she was supposed helping. It's near the East River. We're waiting on a search warrant now."

"How long will that take?" Castle asked.

"Hopefully, not too long. We have to do this by the book, bro."

"Yeah, I'm aware of that."

***CCC***

_24 Hours Earlier_

Kate's sleep was filled with dark dreams and terrifying images. Then she'd hear the whirr of the capacitor charging up and know that she was about to be electrocuted again. Now they were targeting her wrists. She vaguely wondered where they were going to go after that. She kept begging them to kill her, only to have them laugh at her.

She was dreaming when she saw flashes of blue and red illuminating the room. "It looks like we have company," Tyson said. "You're going to have to move her. Do it exactly the way that we talked about."

Kate felt the straps being loosened on her restraints. "Kate, if you try to fight me, I will taser you. Are we clear?" She heard Nieman's voice as if from a distance.

"Are you going to kill me now?" She asked from around the gag in her mouth.

"Soon," Nieman slipped her arm around Kate's waist and dragged her from the room, taking her into another room in the warehouse and dumping her body on a bare mattress. She stood there, looking down at her quarry even as she heard the shouting from the other room. "I really didn't want it to end like this, Detective. I was hoping to watch both of you die."

With those last spoken words, Nieman popped a handful of pills into her mouth and downed them with the dosed water that she'd been giving Kate. Within a minute, she collapsed onto the cement floor.

"Beckett! Kate!" Kate could vaguely hear Castle's voice through the roaring in her ears. But she was too tired to answer him. "I've got her! Kate?" She could feel the gag being removed from her mouth and felt familiar hands lifting her up.

She forced her eyes opened, staring up into eyes that were so vividly blue that they never failed to take her breath away. With her last ounce of strength, she reached up and touched the corner of his mouth before once again losing consciousness.

Castle was still holding her close to him when he heard the words that Tyson was on the run. He lowered Kate back to the mattress and bolted out of the warehouse with Ryan and Esposito on his heels, shouting at him to stop.

"Tyson!" Castle caught up with the serial killer as he was trying to scale a fence. He pulled him to the ground and began pummeling him. "What did you do to her? What did you do to Kate?"

"Castle! Castle, stand down!" He felt Esposito pulling on his shoulders.

"We've got him," Ryan told him. "Go and see about your wife."

When he went back into the warehouse, EMT's were attending to both Kate and Dr. Nieman. "What happened to her?" Castle nodded toward the doctor.

"I'm not sure. It appears to be an overdose of some kind. They'll know more after they run tests at the hospital."

"Can I ride with Kate?"

"Of course."

He climbed into the ambulance after her and sat at her side, holding her hand. She was filthy and she smelled horrible, but she was alive. "What are these marks?" He asked the EMT, nodding toward the burn marks on the insides of her wrists.

"They look like burns. She has them on the insides of her ankles, too."

"Kate, I'm so sorry," he brought her hand up to his lips. "But you're home now and we're going to figure out a way to fix this."

**A/N #5: Sorry that it took so long to update. I got sick and it's still kicking my butt. **

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	11. Snow and Shadows

**DISCLAIMERS: Alas, I own nothing that anyone would recognize.**

**SUMMARY: Kate and Castle spend a snowy few days in the Hamptons while Kate continues to battle her demons from her two days with Tyson and Nieman. This is an M-rated chapter.**

**A/N #1: I'm still battling the flu, so I hope this chapter makes some kind of sense. I promise that I will read and re-read to make sure I don't use words like 'speculate' three times in one sentence.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 11: Snow and Shadows**

It was the sound of Kate crying out in her sleep that woke Castle up. They had spent the previous evening curled up in a blanket together watching TV. Kate had fallen asleep with her head on his chest sometime after 11, and he had managed to get her into bed where she'd moved into her usual position of late, with her head on his chest. He'd soon gone to sleep stroking her shoulder.

But now something was invading her dreams and Castle was powerless to stop whatever it was. "Please stop," she thrashed her arms out. "Please leave me alone. Please stop hurting me."

"Kate," Castle quietly called her name. "Kate, wake up. It's just a dream. You're home now and you're safe. Come on, sweetie, wake up."

It took a few minutes, but eventually her eyes slowly opened. "Castle," she breathed his name.

"Hey," he smiled.

"She wanted my face, Castle," she reached for him, burying her face in his neck.

"She's dead, Kate. She can't hurt you, anymore."

"Can we leave early tomorrow? I really want to get away from the memories."

"Kate—"

"Castle, I'm not ready to talk right now."

"Okay," he rubbed her back. "Okay. We'll leave after you see the doctor."

"My wrists and ankles are fine," she protested.

"You also promised that you'd have a follow-up," he reminded her.

"Castle, how long was I unconscious before I finally woke up?" She propped herself up on her elbow.

"It was about 15 hours. You'd wake up from time to time, but you didn't stay awake more than a few minutes. I never left your side."

"I know. Will you stay with me tomorrow when I see the doctor?"

"I'll be there," he reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear. "How about some tea?"

"Do you think that you can tell me a story instead?" She once again settled down on his chest, her fingers drifting down to his stomach.

"What would you like to hear?"

"Can you tell me a story about two star-crossed lovers searching for each other after they were separated by an evil queen and her henchman?"

"I don't know if I'm ready to tell you that story, yet," he kissed the top of her head.

"Were you scared?"

"I thought that I was never going to see you again," she could feel the deep timbre of his voice under her ear.

"I thought they had killed you," her fingers played with the soft cotton of his t-shirt. "I was always so cold. I don't think she ever gave me a blanket. I'm still so freezing cold, Castle."

"Hold on, I might have a solution," he carefully got out of bed and walked over to the huge walk-in closet, returning moments later with a lamb's wool blanket. Her smile was huge when he got back into bed and spread the blanket over the two of them, tucking it in around her. "How's that?"

"Better," she snuggled under the warmth of the blanket and his body heat, feeling it seep into her pores. "I'm so tired of dreaming, Castle. Tell me a happy story."

"The night that we came back from D.C. after Bracken was taken into custody, I woke up sometime in the middle of the night, just like a thousand other nights since we'd first started sleeping together. But the only difference this time was you had this look of total peace on your face. I was so happy that I got to play a part in that."

"I was glad that you got to be a part of it, too. I really couldn't have done it without you."

He wrapped his arms tighter around her as he felt her finally relax in his arms and go back to sleep. Now that the drugs were flushing out of her system, he'd noticed that she wasn't sleeping as well. He'd also noticed that she didn't like letting him out of her sight. But Castle was perfectly all right with that. As far as he was concerned, he never had any intention of letting her out of his sight again, either.

***CCC***

When Castle opened his eyes again, it was still dark in the bedroom. He picked his phone up from his nightstand and squinted at it, seeing that it was just after five in the morning. The second thing that got his attention was he was now alone in their bed. "Kate?" He sat up and called out. The bathroom door was open and the light still on, so he knew that she probably wasn't in the bathroom.

He got up and grabbed his robe from a nearby chair, slipping it on and loosely belting it around him as he quietly padded out of the bedroom, through his office and into the living room. The cold hit him like a slap in the face. Looking across the room, he saw that the French doors leading outside of the loft were opened. "Kate?" He called out again, walking over to the opened doors.

The snow was falling in huge fluffy flakes and Kate was sitting on one of the patio chairs, her face lifted toward the sky, her facial expression one of pure bliss as she caught snowflakes on her tongue. She was wrapped in the blanket that he'd put over her a few hours earlier, but it offered her little protection against the bone-chilling cold. "Kate, what're you doing out here?" He knelt down beside the chair.

"I woke up and it was snowing," she smiled at him. "It looked so fresh and so clean. I wanted to be a part of it."

"Babe, you're freezing," he took her hand in his.

"Castle, I'm fine," she yanked her hand free from him. "I never noticed how beautiful the snow is from up here. Can we go to Central Park later if it's still snowing? I love watching the snow fall in the park."

"Yeah, we can go to the park before we head to the Hamptons. Kate, why don't you come inside? I'll run you a bath so that you can warm up."

"You can share my blanket," she offered, opening the blanket. "I don't want to go inside yet. It's so fresh and clean out here, Castle. It smells so good. Please stay with me?"

Castle helped her to her feet before sitting down in the chair and pulling her down onto his lap, wrapping the blanket around both of them. She rested her head on his shoulder and he placed his hand over hers on her stomach. They sat on the patio for almost an hour before he felt Kate start to shiver violently against him. "Kate, you're cold. Come on, let's go and take a shower."

He led her back into the apartment before closing and locking the door. Once inside of the bathroom, he turned the water on, adjusting the temperature before he undressed her and then himself. He then stepped into the huge shower stall and helped her in after him. Kate held her head up to the warmth of the spray, running her fingers through her hair to wet it. She then smiled at Castle and pressed herself up to capture his lips with hers. "I know you think I'm crazy."

"No, I don't think you're crazy. But I do want to understand what it is that's going through your head. Kate, its freezing cold outside."

"But it was clean out there. I just want to feel clean."

"Kate, he didn't do anything to you."

"I just want to feel clean, Castle," she reached behind her for her shower gel, presenting the bottle to him. "Make me feel clean."

He grabbed her sponge and filled it with the cherry-scented soap before carefully washing every inch of her, just like he always had. She then took his soap and returned the favor, her smile warming his heart. After they showered and dried off, they went into their bedroom to get dressed for Kate's doctors' appointment. He went into the closet to get a shirt and watched Kate, who was standing in front of her shoe rack, contemplating the rows of shoes in front of her. "My boots rub my ankles and I can't wear my heels," she turned toward him.

"How about your jogging shoes? You just have to wear shoes until we get to the Hamptons. After that, you can kick them off or wear your slippers. It's just for a little while, Kate."

She reached down and removed her Nikes from the rack. She sat on the edge of the bed and pulled them on, smiling as she watched him button his shirt. He turned and met her smile. "I love this shirt," she smoothed down his collar. "It brings out the blue in your eyes."

"Well, if I remember, you did pick it out for me," he gave her a quick peck on the lips. "We need to get going."

The snowy road conditions made the trip to the hospital a nightmare. By the time they were ushered into an examining room, Kate's good mood was gone, replaced by the nervous edginess Castle had experienced earlier when he'd found her outside. She was sitting on the examination table, swinging her legs out restlessly when Dr. Carson entered the room, whistling tunelessly. "How are you feeling, Det. Beckett?"

"I feel fine. My wrists and ankles are fine. Can I leave now?"

"Let me take a look and I'll see. Are you still using the ointment that I gave you?" He checked the burns on her wrists.

"Yes. Twice a day."

"If you'll remove your shoes and socks, I'll take a look at your ankles."

"My ankles look the same as my wrists."

"Have you been having any pain?"

"Yes. I couldn't wear my boots because they rub against the burns and I can't wear my heels for the same reason."

"How have you been sleeping?"

"Fine, as long as we leave lights on."

"That isn't exactly true—" Castle began to say, until Kate stopped him with a death stare.

"You were saying, Mr. Castle?"

"I found her outside on our patio at five this morning."

"I told you that I wanted to watch the snow. It's not a big deal."

"No, you told me that you wanted to feel clean. I still don't have a clue as to what that means."

"Kate, have you contacted your therapist?" Dr. Carson asked.

"No, not yet. Can I leave now?"

"Yeah, I'll sign your papers. You can follow up with your regular doctor. But I think that you should contact your therapist."

Kate didn't say anything until after she and Castle stepped onto the elevator to go to the parking garage. "It's a long story."

"The last time that I checked, I have lots of time," he took her hand in his. "You mentioned this morning wanting to go to the park. Let's walk around the park and then we'll head to the Hamptons."

"It's not a walk around the park story, Castle. It's a 'sit in front of the fireplace with a bottle of wine' story."

"So, tonight we'll crack open a bottle of wine and talk. I forgot to ask Dr. Giggles if you'd been cleared to have sex."

"Castle, I don't care if he cleared me or not. Tonight, I plan on getting you horizontal and naked."

"Sounds like a plan," he grinned.

Castle had walked around the park hundreds of times with Alexis. But he'd never understood the true beauty of Central Park in the snow until he watched it through Kate's eyes. Walking hand in hand, he wished that he'd brought a camera with him. Instead, he settled on taking shots of her with his phone. It was so quiet, nothing but the sound of the snow under their feet. They stopped by Wollman Rink to watch the ice skaters twirl around the ice. "Do you remember the movie 'Love Story?'" She smiled at him.

"Are you kidding? I had fantasies about Ali McGraw for years. Why?"

"Do you remember the scene at the skating rink?"

"Yeah, but only because it was the last happy scene before everything went to hell for Oliver and Jenny. Why are we talking about a 40-year-old tearjerker movie?"

"Every time I come to Central Park on a day like this, it reminds me of 'Love Story.' I remember watching that movie with my mom when I was 10 or 11. My dad came home and found both of us on the sofa, crying hysterically with a box of tissues between us."

"Does 'Love Story' still make you cry?"

"The movie doesn't, but the music still does. Come on, Castle, let's go to the Hamptons," she slipped her gloved hand in his.

The normal three-hour drive from the city to the Hamptons took twice as long due to the weather and an accident on the way up. It was almost six o'clock by the time Castle pulled up in front of the house. Kate was smiling when he opened her door for her to get out of the car. "I used to bring Alexis out here every once in a while when she was small. We'd make snowmen and snow angels or we'd sit in front of the fireplace and make s'mores," he led her into the house.

"It's beautiful out here, Castle. It looks so . . . clean," she walked to the back of the house and stood staring out of the doors to the whiteness of the backyard. "I don't even want to walk in it because I don't want our footprints to mess it up."

"Well, if it snows all night, the new snow will cover our footprints up. Let's go for a walk before it gets dark," he held his hand out to her before unlocking the back door and stepping out onto the porch.

They walked across the yard to the gazebo where they'd said their wedding vows just a few months earlier. The sound of the Atlantic could be heard far below them. Kate wrapped her arms around Castle's waist as they stood there in silence. "Thank you for bringing me out here. I know that the drive was a pain in the ass."

"Well, I think we could both use a break from the city for a few days. Now, would you like to go back to the house and see what the housekeeper left us to eat?" She glanced up at him and smiled.

Back at the house, Castle started the fireplace before he joined Kate in the kitchen. Between the two of them, they put together a tray of fruit, cheese, and crackers along with a bottle of red wine. They then settled on the floor in front of the fire, listening to the flames crackling and watching the snow fall outside. "Was I filthy when you found me?" Kate asked, taking her refilled wine glass from Castle. "You can be honest, Castle."

"Yeah, you were a mess. Does that have anything to do with why you're on this cleanliness kick?" He felt like kicking himself when he saw her eyes brighten with tears. "Hey? Kate, I'm not going to judge you. They had you tied down and drugged. You were in no condition to fight back."

"They humiliated me, Castle. When they electrocuted me . . . I . . . my bladder . . . I couldn't help it, Castle. It just happened."

"It was an involuntary response to a sudden shock. It happens to death row inmates and people who suffer traumatic experiences."

"At some point I woke up and she was giving me a sponge bath. I didn't want her touching me, but I just wanted to be clean. But she only cleaned me off that one time. I don't know how many times they electrocuted me. I'd hear the capacitor start up and I started blocking out the rest."

"They didn't tell me much at the hospital; just that they cleaned you up. Kate, I didn't care how filthy you were. I was just glad to see you alive again."

"I wish that I could remember when you found me," she put her glass on the table and moved into his arms. "I knew that you'd never give up."

"Giving up was never an option, Kate. I was so scared," the words caught in his throat, as he tucked her hair behind her ear. "They kept sending me these videos that were just horrifying. You were strapped to a table and you looked so scared. I just wanted to find you and take you away from whatever they were doing to you."

"I would dream about you," she touched the corner of his mouth. "I'd dream about our wedding night. All that you wanted was to give me my perfect day and it was, Castle," she smiled. "It was everything that I could have dreamed. But that night . . . it was like making love with you for the first time."

He smiled at the memory of that night. He remembered undressing her so slowly and worshipping every inch of her as if it was the first time. And for him it was, since they were now a married couple. "You looked absolutely breathtaking. I couldn't keep my hands off of you."

"I know. I remember," she blushed.

"So, you were saying something earlier about getting horizontal and naked," he moved her so that she was straddling his lap, his hands brushing up and down her spine, his lips nuzzling her neck.

"Yeah, I definitely want to get horizontal and naked," she closed her eyes and sighed at the feel of his lips on her neck. "I want to clean up first."

"Okay. You go and do what you need to do. I'll meet you upstairs."

"Will you bring the wine?"

"I'll bring the wine and the food."

"Great," she kissed him before climbing off of his lap and going upstairs to the bedroom and bath.

Kate walked into the ensuite bathroom and closed the door. She took a deep breath before removing her clothes and staring at herself in the mirror. The bruises on her abdomen were fading to a sickly greenish-yellow color. She cleaned herself up and brushed her teeth before donning her bathrobe and opening the bathroom door. Castle was sitting on the edge of the bed. She smiled when she saw the tray containing the wine, the cheese, and the crackers on the nightstand beside the bed.

She extended her hand toward him as she walked toward the bed. He pulled her between his knees and untied her robe, pulling it opened. His hands spanned her waist as he pulled her even closer. Her eyes fluttered closed when she felt his lips on her ribcage. She bent down and kissed him, her tongue tracing his mouth, begging for entrance which he willingly gave. His hands roamed down her back to her ass, eliciting a giggle from her when he lovingly squeezed it. "Are you good?" He whispered against her mouth.

"Yeah, I'm good. I love you for asking."

"Hey, we're not doing this if you're not ready."

"Castle, I've been ready. You're not going to hurt me."

Her fingers reached forward and she began unbuttoning his shirt, her eyes never leaving his. He loved the way that her face always lit up when they were intimate. She'd told him once that she loved getting him naked. He loved getting her naked just as much. He still wanted to pinch himself when he realized that this smoking hot woman was now his wife. She pushed his shirt from his shoulders, letting her hands wander down his chest. She then shoved him onto his back and moved back to unbuckle his belt. Her fingers then slipped inside of his waistband and unbuttoned his slacks, and then slid the zipper down slowly, her eyes meeting his and matching his grin.

He raised his hips as Kate pulled his slacks down his legs, stopping when his shoes blocked her progress. She quickly removed his shoes and socks before moving her hands up his legs, stopping at his boxers. She could see his erection straining against the silk of his boxers. She licked her lips slowly before sliding her hand into his shorts, wrapping her hand around him. Kate loved touching him, feeling the heat of him; the girth of him in her fingers. She loved watching Castle's face when she touched him. He'd fight to keep his eyes on her while she stroked him. But finally his eyes would slip closed and he'd let out the sexiest moan she'd ever heard in her life.

He was so hard and so hot. Kate loved the feel of him twitching in her hand. "Kate, you need to stop," he gasped, moving his hand down toward her.

"Why?" Her voice was all innocence, but her movements were anything but. "I like touching you. But do you know what hot, wild, sexy thing I like doing more than touching you?"

"Uh-huh," he nodded his head vigorously.

Kate smiled before dropping to her knees and flicking her tongue up one side of his cock and down the other before wrapping her lips around him and driving him in deep. Castle's eyes rolled back into his head at the sensation. "Fuck," he growled when he felt her mouth working him over so skillfully. "Kate, please?" His fingers grappled in her hair.

"Ummm?" She hummed around him.

Castle would never deny that he loved it when Kate turned him into a babbling idiot. But he also loved it when he was able to make her come completely undone under him, either by his mouth or by him hard and driving inside of her. Listening to her and feeling her was his favorite things in the whole world. He groaned loudly when he felt her take his balls in her hand, fondling him gently in her fingers. "Kate, please stop," he begged her. "I'm going to come."

"I know," her voice was teasing and she increased her sucking on his rock hard erection. "Let go, Castle."

"Oh shit!" He groaned, his hips leaving the bed as he came hard and fast.

He was still trying to catch his breath, stars swimming under his closed lids when he felt Kate carefully cleaning him up, her tongue bathing every inch of him, causing small tremors to pass through his body. After several minutes, he felt Kate sliding her way up his body, her hands traveling up his legs, then his stomach and finally his chest before he felt her lips on his. "Hey," he opened his eyes and smiled into her bright green eyes.

"Hey," she kissed him softly, sighing when his hands caressed her breasts inside of her robe.

Castle slid the robe off of Kate's body, letting it slide to the bedroom floor. He then went back to her breasts, rolling her nipple between his thumb and forefinger, feeling it harden. He then slowly rolled her onto her back and moved his lips down to her neck, sucking hard on her pulse point, feeling her writhe under him, his fingers still busy on her breast.

Listening to her tells, Castle moved down her body, paying homage to the small circular scar between her breasts, feeling Kate's fingers in his hair, holding him close. He moved his mouth over and carefully took her nipple between his teeth, nipping it gently and then soothing the bite with his tongue.

Kate whimpered when she felt Castle lave her nipple with his tongue. Her breasts were extremely sensitive and Castle knew how to play her like a violin. The rough brush of his tongue on her nipple added to the increasing ache that was building between her legs. She began to squirm when she felt him kissing his way down her stomach.

Castle felt Kate tense up when he put his hands on her thighs. "Kate, are you all right?" When she didn't answer, he gently kneaded her legs with his fingers until he felt her relax once again. He slid his fingers through her wet folds, listening to her ragged cries of pleasure. He pressed his thumb against her swollen clit, moving it in just the way he knew she liked.

Kate moved her hips in time to Castle's fingers moving on her. The tension building in her body was so exquisite that she almost didn't want it to end. And when Castle replaced his fingers with his mouth, the tension ramped even higher. He was so fucking good at this. He made it impossible for her to think when he moved his lips and tongue along her wet, swollen folds. She carded her fingers through his hair, winding them through the short strands as she felt her orgasm beginning to build. When she felt him take her clit between his teeth and gently bite down, she cried out loudly, grabbing his head and holding him tighter against her as the waves of her climax crashed over her.

She was still trembling with the aftershocks when she felt Castle moving back up her body, trailing his lips along the way. She moaned against his lips, tasting herself on him as they shared a tender, yet passionate kiss. She turned onto her side, facing him before throwing her leg over his hip, feeling him brush against her. "Round two?" She rubbed her nose against him, laughing when he kissed the tip of her nose.

Their lovemaking was slow and sensual, each of them trying to hold off their climax as long as they could. But finally, neither of them could hold off the inevitable any longer. Kate collapsed on Castle's chest, her body sweat soaked and exhausted, but she was thoroughly sated. After a few minutes, she moved up, groaning when she felt Castle slip out of her. She then lay at his side, resting her head on his chest and smiling when she felt him pull the sheet and comforter over the both of them. "You know what would feel nice right about now?" His voice was low in the quiet of their bedroom.

"No, what?"

"A nice, warm bath. Maybe I could even turn the jets on."

"That does sound nice," she agreed.

Castle got out of bed and strolled toward the bathroom naked. He turned and smiled at Kate, who was watching him from their bed. "Are you coming?" He asked her.

"Yeah," she sat up. "I was just enjoying the view."

Kate threw her legs over the side of the bed and grabbed their wine glasses before making her way to the bathroom, watching her husband as he turned on the faucet and added a generous amount of bath oil to the water. After swirling his hand through the water, he turned and offered his hand to Kate. After setting the wine glasses on the edge she took Castle's hand and stepped into the tub, moving up so that he could slide in behind her.

Once he was comfortable, he reached for Kate's shoulders and pulled her back against him, folding his arms under her breasts. "Maybe tomorrow we can get in the pool," his breath was warm against her neck.

"Castle, there's two feet of snow on the ground."

"But we have a heated pool," he reminded her.

"Can we walk on the beach?"

"We will do anything that you want to do," his lips grazed her temple. "Are you feeling better now that you're out of the city?"

"Um-hmmm," she slid down further in his arms. "You take such good care of me, Castle."

"I love you."

"I love you, too," she tugged one of his hands down so that she could tangle her fingers with his.

After soaking in the tub for a while, they both got out and dried off before once again climbing into bed. Kate rested her head on Castle's chest, smiling when she felt his fingers softly trail on her shoulder. She went to sleep thinking of what Castle had planned for them for the next day.

**A/N #2: Except for a lingering cough, I'm finally on the mend. I'm sorry that this chapter took so long to complete.**

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	12. Waiting for Answers

**DISCLAIMERS: I don't own anything.**

**SUMMARY: Everybody waits anxiously after Kate is rescued from Tyson and Nieman.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 12: Waiting for Answers**

_The afternoon of Kate's rescue_

Castle climbed into the back of the ambulance where one of the EMT's was still attending to Kate. "Can I touch her?" He asked anxiously.

"Of course. Just try not to get in my way." The EMT took out a pen light and used it to look at Kate's pupils. Castle startled when she moaned and batted at the light. "Kate? Can you hear me?" The EMT shouted at her. "Her pupils are dilated. They'll do a blood draw at the hospital to see what she's been given. I'm going to start an IV to get her rehydrated."

"What are these marks?" Castle took note of the ugly red marks on her wrists.

"They look like burns. She has them on her ankles, also."

"What in the hell did they do to you, Kate?" Castle whispered, bringing her fingers up to his lips and gently kissing them. "Please wake up and talk to me."

Kate could hear Rick talking, but it was too much effort to open her eyes, as much as she wanted to. She wanted to look at him, touch him, kiss him, and have him hold her. But her eyes were so heavy.

When the ambulance arrived at the hospital, the EMT's raced inside to a trauma room leaving Castle waiting helplessly on the other side. Moments later, he was joined by Ryan and Esposito. "Did she wake up?" Espo asked as Castle shook his head.

"The paramedic said it looks like she was drugged. They also burned her with something. She has marks on her wrists and ankles," Castle's voice choked as he felt Ryan put a calming hand on his shoulder. "I should call her dad and my mother. I'll be right back."

Inside of the trauma room, Kate's filthy clothes had been cut from her body and one of the nurses cleaned her up before dressing her in a hospital gown. "Okay, people," the doctor began barking orders. "Let's get a tox screen, urinalysis, and a CT scan." He then took out a light and shined it in Kate's eyes, getting the same reaction that the EMT had gotten earlier when she groaned and tried to slap the light away. "Her pupils are dilated and reactive. Mrs. Castle, can you hear me? Kate? You're at New York Pres and you're safe now. Can you hear me?" He repeated.

"Stop," she mumbled, shaking her head from side to side.

"Kate, I need for you to wake up so I can ask you some questions."

"No. Stop."

"We're going to start some additional IV fluids. Hopefully you'll start feeling better in no time. We're going to run some tests to determine what you've been given. Right now, I'm going to go out and talk to your husband."

Kate didn't care where the doctor went so long as he shut up while he did it. When the doctor stepped out of the trauma room, he approached Ryan and Esposito. "Is one of you gentlemen Mr. Castle?"

"No, Mr. Castle's down the hall on his phone," Ryan pointed.

"Thank you," the doctor strode down the hallway just as Castle ended his phone call. "Mr. Castle? I'm Dr. Carson."

"How's Kate?"

"We're going to run some tests to determine what drugs she was given. I also want to do a CT scan to see if she suffered any other injuries. She's responsive to stimuli, but she's somewhat sluggish and combative. This is probably due to whatever they gave her. We've started IV's to try to flush the narcotics out of her system and to rehydrate her. We should be moving her to a room soon and then you can be with her."

"Thank you."

He walked back over to join Ryan and Esposito just as Capt. Gates entered the hospital. "Mr. Castle, how is Det. Beckett?"

"They're still running some tests, but the doctor is fairly positive that she was heavily drugged. They just don't know with what."

"What is the doctor's name?" She asked.

"Uh, Carson."

The captain stopped a nurse that was walking by and flashed her badge at her. "I'm Capt. Gates. I need to speak to Dr. Carson immediately."

"Yes, ma'am," the nurse walked into the trauma room.

Dr. Carson stepped out a moment later, appearing extremely irritated by the interruption. "Are you Dr. Carson?" Capt. Gates stepped up to the doctor. "I'm Capt. Victoria Gates. Det. Kate Beckett is under my command. I want our lab to run the toxicology tests."

"Capt. Gates, I can assure you that this hospital's lab is one of the best in the city."

"As well as extremely backlogged. I can put a priority on the labs so that we can find out what Det. Beckett has been drugged with."

"Very well. I'll have the blood tests sent to the police lab," he sighed.

"When you have the blood work ready, my detectives here will take them to the OCME lab," Capt. Gates looked at Ryan and Esposito.

"Of course. It'll be ready in just a few minutes," he turned and went back into the trauma room.

A few minutes later, a nurse came out of the trauma room carrying three vials of blood, which she handed to Ryan. "Get those to Dr. Parish," Capt. Gates ordered them.

"Yes, sir. Castle, keep us posted, bro," Espo told their friend.

"I will."

It was several minutes later when orderlies came out of the trauma room, wheeling Kate between them on a gurney. "We're moving her upstairs," Dr. Carson informed Castle. "You can follow us up."

"Thank you," Castle fell into step behind the gurney as they rolled it toward the elevator.

They took the elevator up to the sixth floor and down the hall to Room 621. Once inside, the orderlies transferred Kate from the gurney to the hard, narrow hospital bed. They made sure that her IV's were okay before they left the room. "I'll check on her as often as I can. Hopefully the IV's can be removed by this evening."

"Thank you," Castle pulled a chair over beside the bed and took Kate's hand in his.

"I'll come back when I get the results of the CT scan."

"Thank you, doctor." He reached up and brushed Kate's hair from her face. After watching him for a couple of minutes, the doctor finally stepped out. "I thought that he was never going to leave. Kate, please wake up. You're safe now."

Her eyes felt like they were glued shut. But just hearing Castle's voice reminded her of home. Those late nights when she'd come home late to find him in his office writing. He'd pull her onto his lap while they regaled each other with tales of the other's day. Or the early mornings when he'd whisper sweet things to her before she got up for work. She fought to open up her eyes and look at him. She had to gaze into his eyes. She just had to.

Castle was still holding her hand, stroking it when he saw her eyelids flutter. "Kate?" Her eyes slowly opened as he smiled. "Hey," he whispered softly.

"Tired," her voice was slurred.

"I know. But you're safe now."

"So tired, Castle," she was fighting to keep her eyes opened.

"Sleep, Kate. I'll be here when you wake up."

"'Kay," her eyes fully closed and she fell deep asleep once again.

Castle continued holding her hand up to his lips, brushing them against her fingers while he watched her sleep. She'd have several minutes where she'd sleep soundly, followed by moments when it was obvious that her sleep was being interrupted by horrible nightmares. During the nightmares, she'd cry out and lash out with her hands and feet.

Castle was in the midst of calming her during one of her restless periods when he heard a light tap on the door. Seconds later, the door opened and Alexis tentatively entered the room, carrying a small suitcase. "Dad, how is she?"

"She's going to be okay. Thank you for bringing her some clothes."

"You're welcome. Kate's dad is right outside. He rode up in the elevator with me."

"Thank you, sweetie," he stood up and kissed her on top of her head. "Can you sit with Kate while I go and talk to Jim?"

"Yeah," Alexis readily agreed.

"She's having a lot of nightmares. If she wakes up and asks for me, tell her I'll be right back."

"Okay," Alexis sat down in her father's chair.

Castle stepped outside where he found Jim Beckett leaning against the wall. "Rick, how is Katie?"

"She's stable," he replied. "They drugged her with something, but we don't know what they gave her."

"Can I see her?"

"Yeah, of course. Alexis is in there right now, but I know that Kate will definitely be glad that you're there with her."

Castle walked back into the room followed by Jim. Jim felt his heart break at the sight of his daughter appearing so pale in that hospital bed. "Did they hurt her?" He fought to keep his voice steady.

"She has marks on the insides of her wrists and ankles. The doctor thinks they're burns of some kind," Castle explained. "Alexis and I are going to go and get some coffee."

"All right," Jim sat down and picked up Kate's limp hand.

"We'll be back in 15 or 20 minutes."

"Take your time." Jim waited until Rick and Alexis had left the room before he focused his attention on his daughter. "Oh, Katie," he sighed softly.

Kate's eyes fluttered opened and she smiled when she saw her dad sitting at her bedside. "Hi, dad."

"Hey, Bug," he called her by her nickname.

"Where's Castle?"

"He went to get some coffee. Do you want me to call him?"

"No. How's your day been?" She joked.

"Better than yours from the look of things," he teased back. "Do you need anything?"

"Yeah, some water would be great. I'm really thirsty."

Jim turned behind him and poured some water into a plastic cup and inserted a straw before placing the straw to Kate's lips. "Here you go."

Suddenly Kate's eyes got huge in her face and she slapped the cup from her father's hand, sending water flying into an arc all over the bed and the cup clattering to the floor. "No! It's drugged!"

"Katie—" Jim was helpless as to what to do.

"You're trying to drug me!" She kept screaming as Jim reached down and rang the button for the nurse.

In less than a minute a nurse came running into the room while Kate continued to insist that her father was trying to drug her. "Kate, nobody is drugging you," the nurse looked Kate right in the eyes.

"There's something . . . in the . . . water," Kate pointed at her sheets, which were splattered with the spilled water.

"Kate, how about if I get you a fresh bottle of water? One that's still sealed so that nobody can tamper with it. I'll go get it and bring it to you."

"No cups," she insisted.

"No cups. I'll go and get the water right now," the nurse turned to Jim, who was standing in dumbfounded silence. "Her behavior is due to whatever she was given. I'll be right back."

"Why were you trying to drug me?" Kate accused her father, her eyes bright.

"I'm sorry. It won't happen again," he couldn't think of anything else to say to her that would placate her.

Castle and Alexis had just stepped off of the elevator when the nurse walked past them with a bottle of water. "Mr. Castle," she stopped in front of Castle. "I was about to take this in to Kate. She got very upset when she thought her water had been dosed. Assure her that this bottle is still sealed and hasn't been tampered with."

"Okay," he sighed. "Thank you."

"I've also paged Dr. Carson. He should be down shortly."

Castle walked into Kate's room with Alexis right behind him. He could see how distressed Jim was. "Castle, where were you? My own father was trying to drug me! My own father!"

"Kate, no one was trying to drug you. I brought you a bottle of water. It hasn't been opened," he tentatively held the bottle toward her.

Kate took the bottle, examining it carefully before she opened it and took a few swallows. "Here," she offered the bottle back to Rick. "Hold onto it and don't let anyone else touch it."

"Okay."

"I'm so tired."

"Do you want me to stay until you go to sleep?" Castle asked as she nodded.

"Come on, Jim," Alexis put her hand on the older man's arm. "Kate's doctor should be on his way. We can wait for him."

"I'll be back in a little while, Katie," Jim softly kissed Kate on her forehead.

"I want to go home, Castle," she hissed after her father and Alexis vacated the room.

"Soon. They just want to keep an eye on you for a while."

"I can't believe that my own father was trying to drug me!"

Castle was about to say something when the door opened and Dr. Carson stepped in. "Mr. Castle, do you mind if I speak to Kate alone for a few minutes?"

"I'll be right outside," he pressed his lips to her forehead before leaving the room.

"I'll send a nurse in to change your bed and help you into some dry clothes in just a second. I wanted to ask you something first," the doctor sat in Castle's chair. "Did you start to feel strange after you were given water?"

"I kept seeing things," she wiped away tears. "Demons came out of the walls. I didn't want to drink anything that she gave me."

"Kate, you're safe here. The only medications that you're being given are in your IV's and I'll be removing those in a few hours. Nobody is trying to drug you, especially not the people who love you."

"I can't help feeling this way."

"I know. You're going to feel better in a few days as soon as the drugs are flushed from your system."

"I'm so tired and I want to go home," she threw her head back on her pillow and sighed.

"Hopefully you can go home tomorrow. I'm going to go talk to your family and then I'll send your husband back in. Try to get some rest."

Castle, Jim, and Alexis were standing against the wall across from Kate's room when the doctor came out. "I haven't received the results of the tox screen back yet, but there are a lot of drugs that cause paranoia. Please try not to take it personally. Kate's going to be her normal self in no time. Mr. Castle, can we have a few words privately?"

"Of course," Castle followed Dr. Carson down the hall. "Is there something wrong?"

"Kate's CT scan was negative, but there is a lot of bruising on her body, including some bruising on the insides of her thighs."

"Was Kate raped?"

"No. I did a rape kit and it came back negative for fluids and trauma. I'm pretty sure these people did a number on her both physically and mentally."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure they did, too."

"She's been asking to go home. As it stands now, I'll probably be releasing her sometime tomorrow."

"I'm sure that made her happy," he smiled.

"Yeah, it did."

"Can I go back in to her now?"

"Yes. I'll check on her again in a few hours and hopefully I can remove the IV's."

When he went back into the room, Kate was once again asleep. He sat down and placed the water bottle on the table by the bed. He rested his chin on his fingers, leaning on the edge of her bed while he watched her restlessly sleep, her arms and legs constantly moving. He hoped that she'd eventually find peace from the demons that were tormenting her.

***CCC***

It was dark when Kate once again opened her eyes, the only light coming from a lamp that was burning beside her bed. She was confused when she realized that she was no longer strapped down. Then she looked to her right and saw Castle slumped in a chair beside her bed, his head at an awkward angle. Her left hand throbbed. She looked at it and saw a band-aid on the back of her hand.

"Rick?" Her voice was hoarse. "Castle?"

Castle jerked awake when he heard his name being called. He smiled when he saw that Kate was awake again. "Hey," he sat up. "What do you need?"

"How long have I been here?"

"Since earlier this afternoon." He was confused. She didn't remember being awake and talking to him throughout the day? She didn't remember accusing her father of trying to drug her?

"You came to get me?"

"Baby, I will _always _come to get you," his eyes misted over.

"Where are they? Where are Tyson and Nieman?"

"They're upstairs in a locked ward. Kate, you need to rest. I promise that I will explain everything to you in the morning when we've both had some sleep."

"I kept seeing you, Rick. I'd open my eyes and I'd see you."

"You were awake a few times today, but you weren't really coherent. Nieman drugged you, Kate. Lanie's still waiting for tox results, but we think you were given a whole pharmacy line full of drugs."

"You really came to get me?" She reached out and touched his face with her fingers.

"I searched heaven and earth to find you," his voice was soft. "I wouldn't have stopped searching until I found you. Just like you did when I was missing. I love you, Kate."

"When can I go home? Do I have to stay?"

"The doctor is probably going to release you tomorrow." He stood up and toed off his shoes before climbing into bed beside Kate, who melted into him.

"Don't let go of me, Rick," she whispered sleepily against his chest.

"I'm never going to let you go again. I promise," he whispered the vow into her hair.

"I thought I was never going to see you again," she nuzzled her nose into his neck before drifting back to sleep, her hand resting lightly on Castle's chest.

Holding her against his chest, Castle closed his eyes tightly as he felt tears fall down his face. Kate had voiced the fear that he'd been feeling for the past two and a half days. That fear that he was never going to see her again.

**A/N #1: Sorry that it took so long to get this out. I'm still battling whatever it is I've been battling for the last four weeks. **

**A/N #2: I figure maybe one more chapter and the epilogue are left.**

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	13. Demons in the Dark

**DISCLAIMERS: No, 'Castle' isn't mine.**

**SUMMARY: Kate and Castle continue their getaway to the Hamptons, where they are both forced to face their demons. And though I wasn't planning on it, this chapter also goes into M-rated territory.**

**A/N #1: 'Castle' Monday's are back! Yay!**

**A/N #2: I'm basing this chapter on the comment that Castle made at the end of 'Resurrection' about how Kate's disappearance almost killed him.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 13: Demons in the Dark**

It was the shaking of the bed that woke Kate up first. It was only after she lay awake wondering if she was feeling a freak East Coast earthquake that she heard Castle crying out. "No, no. Leave her alone. Don't you dare hurt her, you motherfucker. No! Stop!"

"Rick," Kate gently patted his chest, trying to wake him up without freaking him out further. "Rick, you're dreaming. I'm safe. I'm right here. Please wake up," she pressed her lips to his neck to assure him that she was right beside him and she was real.

Suddenly his eyes opened and he found himself staring into her beautiful hazel eyes. "Hey," she smiled softly, moving up so that her lips nudged against his. "You were dreaming."

He kissed her, drinking her in, daring to believe that she was really once again here, in bed, with him. "Tyson was holding you that night on the bridge. When I shot him, he fell off of the bridge and took you with him. I lost you."

"No," she was quick to assure him. "No, Rick. You didn't lose me. I'm right here. It was just an awful dream. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere."

She rubbed her thumb along his jaw, seeing the fear that was in his eyes. The fear that she was going to vanish at any second. She sat up and pulled her t-shirt over her head, watching as the look in his eyes changed from one of fear to one of arousal. Kate smiled, deciding that she'd take the aroused look any day. He reached for her, pulling her down onto his chest and kissing her as she moaned in desire.

After making love, Kate cuddled into Castle's arms, feeling him wrap his arms tightly around her as he drifted off to sleep. She lay awake for a long time, stroking his hands and feeling him occasionally twitch in his sleep. She knew that she had been through a living hell during those two days, but she also knew that Castle had been through his own hell while searching for her.

When she woke up the next morning, Castle was still sleeping with his arms draped over her middle. She carefully removed his arms and climbed out of bed, pressing a kiss to his forehead before grabbing her robe, tying it on before she treaded downstairs to the kitchen. She took bacon and eggs from the fridge and went about cooking French toast for her and Castle. After placing the French toast on one plate, she added some sliced berries, poured two cups of coffee, fixing them the way they both liked, and put everything on a tray.

Castle awoke to the tantalizing aroma of fresh coffee and bacon. He sat up, rubbing his eyes and smiling when he saw Kate walk into the bedroom carrying a tray. "I didn't even feel you get up," he kept smiling as Kate walked over and sat on the bed, placing the tray over his lap. "Would you care to share?"

"Of course. Why do you think I made enough for two?" She grinned before leaning forward and kissing him. "Good morning. It snowed some more overnight. Do you want to take a walk on the beach after breakfast?"

"That sounds perfect," he cut into his breakfast, continuing to smile while he ate. While he devoured his meal, he noticed that Kate wasn't eating. "I thought you were going to share with me. Aren't you hungry?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking," she picked up a piece of bacon, taking a bite.

"Really?" He was instantly intrigued by the mystery that was his wife. He meant what he'd said in his wedding vows about exploring the mystery of her for the rest of their lives together. "What are you thinking about?"

She thought for a moment before answering. She didn't want to cast a dark shadow over what had started out as a joyous morning. "I was just thinking about how much I love you," she finally answered, smiling and taking his hand.

"I think about that a lot," he caressed her fingers, his fingers tracing over her wedding ring.

"About how much I love you?" She couldn't resist teasing him.

"About how much _I_ love _you_," he picked up the tray, setting it aside before reaching for her. He kissed her, tasting syrup from the French toast and the sweetness that was purely Kate. After a few moments, he pulled back, resting his forehead against hers. "Let's get dressed and go for a walk."

"Okay," she gave him one more kiss before getting up and gathering up the tray. "I'm going to take this downstairs and I'll be right back."

By the time Kate came back to their bedroom, Castle was dressed. "I'll meet you downstairs," he kissed her on the neck before heading out of the room.

Kate pulled on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, pulling on her pair of boots before going downstairs to meet Castle, who was already holding her coat out for her. He loved her coat. It was white with white fur around the hood. He always thought that she looked like something out of one of her beloved Russian novels when she wore it. And the white made her eyes appear even greener. "Are we ready?" He asked, watching her slip on her gloves before she offered him her hand.

Their breaths appeared as white puffs in the cold air as they walked across the yard, the snow crunching under their feet. He carefully led her down the path from his property to the beach, which was covered with a light dusting of snow. "Wow, Castle," Kate sighed, staring out at the Atlantic.

The sea was churning huge whitecaps which broke when they reached the shore. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" He slipped his arm around her waist, holding her close to his side.

She simply nodded, relishing the feeling of being in his arms again. What she remembered about her ordeal was terrifying, but she knew that it had to have been equally as bad on Rick's end. She knew all too well from her experience the previous summer that the not knowing was worse than the knowing. The not knowing was agonizing. "I know that it was awful for you," her voice was barely above a whisper. But he heard her. He always heard her. He glanced down at her with a puzzled expression in his blue eyes. "The not knowing where I was. That's how it was for me. Some days I thought that the not knowing was going to destroy me." 

"I don't want to talk about that," he turned his attention back to the angry sea.

"Rick—"

"Kate, I really _don't _want to talk about it. I'm not ready to talk about how I was feeling or what I was thinking."

"Okay," she leaned into him, attempting to soothe him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

He turned toward her, seeing the hurt in her eyes. He wrapped his arms around her, feeling her head against his heart. "You didn't upset me. It's just hard to wrap my head around those two days. I want to talk to you about it; I just don't know where to start."

"We'll figure it out, Castle. We always do."

He could feel her shivering against him. He finally pulled back and took her hand. "We should head back to the house. It's too cold to stand out here for long."

When they got back to the house, Castle made them some hot chocolate which they drank while wrapped in a blanket together on the living room sofa. Their silence was companionable and comforting. It had taken Castle a while, but he finally realized that it wasn't necessary for him to talk all of the time. Sometimes being quiet was enough. It was Kate who finally broke the quiet. "When she had me strapped to that table and they were humiliating me, I made myself leave."

"What do you mean?" He placed his empty mug on the coffee table.

"I'd imagine that I was anywhere else but there on that table. It didn't always work. There were times when I'd wish that they'd just kill me. I wasn't sure how much more I could take. I'd piss all over myself and they thought it was fucking hilarious. I was so ashamed that I just wanted to die, Rick."

"They took your control away, Kate. They drugged you, they tortured you, they took your control away," he repeated.

"Not to mention what they did to you."

"Kate—"

"Rick, it's okay. Believe me; I understand that fear of not knowing. I lived with that fear for 63 days."

"I don't see how you did it, Kate. I know that I've said it a hundred times since I came back, but I don't see how you kept it together. You were gone for two days and I thought that it was going to kill me."

"Castle, you kept it together because you had to. Just like I had to during those two months. You've never given up on me, _ever_. I didn't know how and I didn't know when, but I knew that you were going to come and get me. I wish that I could remember that last moment. I so would've loved holding you and kissing you. I would've loved telling you how much I love you."

"I never would've stopped looking, Kate," he stroked her face. "Just like you never stopped looking for me."

"I know. How do you feel now that she's dead and he's going to be?"

"I don't know. I don't let myself think about it. What about you?" He looked at her.

"I hate that she took the coward's way out. I'm glad that you got to beat the shit out of him."

"I'm not happy about that," he blew out his breath. "I wouldn't much rather have had him rotting in a prison cell for the rest of his lousy life."

"I would've always worried about him getting out and continuing to come after our family. None of us were safe from him, Castle. I'm glad that we never have to worry about either of them ever again. Thank you for making us safe from him," she reached for him, kissing him deeply before wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tightly.

He closed his eyes tightly, breathing in the scent of Kate in his arms. He'd never loved anyone the way that he loved her. She was truly the love of his life. He wasn't even aware that he was crying until he felt the tears on his face. "I'm sorry," he began apologizing when Kate pulled away with concern written all over her face. "I'm sorry," he repeated.

"Rick, its okay," she wiped the wetness from his face. "You know that you never have to hide your emotions from me."

"You're always so strong and I'm sitting here acting like a blubbering idiot."

"I wasn't always so strong. I remember begging her to please just kill me and get it over with," her voice caught at the memory. "She just gave me this weird little smile and then she told me that wasn't in the plans. I wasn't always so strong last summer either. Your mother and Alexis were so much stronger than I was at times."

"If it hadn't been for them and the boys, I'm not sure I would've survived those two days," he took her hand, tracing his thumb over her wedding ring. "Every time I looked at the darker possibilities, one of them would be there to remind me of how tough you are; how strong."

"You said that they sent you videos. Do you still have them?"

"No," he shook his head. "I deleted them after we found you. Kate, believe me, you didn't need to see them. I wish I could delete them from my memory."

"Let's make a pact that we'll make new memories over the next few days. Happier memories than the ones they left us with. I think that we still need to talk about what happened, but if we let it take over our every waking moment, it's going to destroy us."

"You're right," he smiled. "I have a great idea."

"Really?" She smiled back.

"Let's start a fire in the fire pit out back and make 'smores."

Castle had bought a small fire pit for the back patio when Alexis was small, but it hadn't been used in a very long time. "I'll get the chocolate, graham crackers, and the marshmallows!" Kate jumped off of the sofa and ran for the kitchen while Castle got up and put his coat back on before going out to the backyard.

When Kate walked out several minutes later, Castle already had a nice fire going in the fire pit. She put the 'smores supplies on a table by the fire pit and sat down in one of the patio chairs. Castle poked at the fire and sat down, handing a skewer to Kate before taking one himself. They each prepared their graham cracker and square of chocolate before holding out a marshmallow over the fire.

The 'smores were gooey, sweet, and chocolaty. They kept leaning toward each other and sharing chocolate flavored kisses while enjoying the fire. The combination of the heat of the fire pit and the cold of the February afternoon made their 'smores making all the more special. "You said that you bought the fire pit for Alexis. Why did you stop using it?" She asked, assembling another treat for herself.

"We only came out here a few times in the wintertime when Alexis was small. She didn't really enjoy it much because all of her friends were only here in the summertime. I guess I wasn't entertaining enough for her. And she didn't get the enchantment of the fire pit. We used it occasionally in the summer to roast marshmallows, but it's probably been three years or so since it last got used."

"This is fun," she wiped marshmallow off of her lower lip with her finger, laughing at the expression on Castle's face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm jealous of that finger," he leaned toward her, kissing her and removing the last remnants of the melted marshmallow while Kate groaned.

"Leave it to you, Castle, to make making 'smores into foreplay."

"We could always go inside and have fun with whipped cream and chocolate," he waggled his eyebrows at her which always made her laugh.

"Soon," she made another 'smore and held it out toward her husband. "Take a bite."

He took a bite, enjoying the taste of graham crackers, melting chocolate and gooey marshmallow on his tongue. But then he was surprised by the feel of Kate's lips on his, her tongue removing all traces of chocolate and marshmallow from the corners of his mouth. "Kate, you're torturing me."

"One more and I promise that we'll go inside and do something far more adult," her grin was infectious.

"We need to let the fire die down first. I don't like to leave it burning."

"Okay," she reached out and grabbed his hand. "This was fun, Castle."

"Yeah, it was. I think this getaway was something that we both needed. You know what I want to do tomorrow?" Kate shook her head. "I want to build a snowman."

"A snowman?"

"When was the last time that you built a snowman, Kate? Or made snow angels? Or built the world's most awesome snow fort?"

"It's been a while," she admitted. "But I'll have you know that my dad taught me how to build an awesome snow fort."

"Why, Mrs. Castle, is that a challenge?"

"Why, Mr. Castle, I believe that it is," she bit her lip and smiled.

He kept his eyes on her when she got up from her chair and stepped in front of his chair, straddling him and letting her lips claim his, drawing a groan of surprise from him. He felt himself getting more aroused when Kate's lips left his, traveling down to his neck and throat, nipping gently at his skin, leaving her mark on him. "Kate," his hands traveled up and down her back, longing to stroke bare skin instead of her heavy winter coat. "Kate," he repeated her name a little louder this time.

"Hmmm?" She finally pulled back enough to look him in the eyes.

He looked over her shoulder, relieved to see that the fire in the pit was finally embers. "Never mind," he hooked his hands under her thighs, managing to haul both of them out of his chair without dropping her.

Once on his feet, he got a better grip on Kate, feeling her wrap her long legs around his waist as he made his way to the door. He quickly turned the door handle, kicking the door closed behind him before carrying his wife down the short hallway to the guest bedroom. He walked over to the bed; all the while Kate was peppering heated kisses over his face. "Castle, why are we in here?" She asked after he deposited her on the bed.

"Are you kidding? I wasn't about to carry you upstairs. I have a lot of control," he paused to catch his breath, "but I'm also not 20, anymore."

"I'm also short on control right now," she sat up and began quickly removing his clothes. "Castle, are you just going to stand there and watch or what?"

"Oh, okay," he put his hands to work removing Kate's clothing.

Once their clothes were off and in a pile on the floor, Kate pushed Castle down onto the bed, quickly straddling him once again. She bent down and kissed him again, her tongue stroking the inside of his mouth before she took one of his hands and placed it between her legs. Feeling the wet heat of her, he didn't need any further instructions. He ran his fingers up and down her slick folds, brushing against her clit just to feel her jump against him and to hear that delicious sound that she made when she was close. "Please, Castle," she moved down onto his fingers to increase the friction.

Castle entered her with one finger before adding a second finger, angling up to press against that one spot that never failed to ignite fireworks in Kate's body. Meanwhile, her lips were everywhere, placing sloppy kisses on his jaw and collarbone as she got closer to orgasm. "Kate, let go," he whispered in her ear as she stiffened up and came with a loud cry.

She sat up and gave him an impish grin before slapping his fingers away from between her legs and reaching for him. Moving down so that she was positioned over him, Castle groaned at the feel of her grinding herself against him. "You like that?" She continued smiling and moving. Unable to speak, Castle just nodded, "Me, too," she moaned loudly, sinking onto his length. "Fuck Rick, you feel so good."

Castle reached up and placed his hands over her breasts, his thumbs rubbing her nipples, earning another sexier-than-hell moan from Kate. She threw her head back, moaning and crying out his name before she put her hands over his, following his motions on her breasts. Watching her was a sight that he never tired of seeing. He knew that without a doubt he was a lucky man.

Kate was rocking against him, crying out every time his pelvic bone brushed against her swollen clit. She was close but suddenly it wasn't enough. In sync with her, just like always, Castle moved his hands from her breasts to her waist and rolled them so that she was pressed into the mattress, Castle's body weight suspended over her. He began to thrust in and out of her at a frantic pace. "Oh shit, yes!" She screamed out as her orgasm began, rolling over her in waves.

Listening to her was all that it took to set Castle off. Calling out her name like a mantra, he spilled into her before collapsing onto her shoulder. "That was out of this world," he panted against her shoulder, feeling her arms and legs wrapping around him. "I must weigh a ton, though."

"No," she held onto him tightly. "Don't go."

"Hey," he pushed up, brushing her hair from her face. "I'm not going far."

Kate let out a disappointed whisper when he rolled over, slipping out of her. But he quickly tugged her back into the cradle of his body, his fingers lightly tracing lines on her back. "Do you want to take a shower and then make dinner?" She asked, her fingers tickling his chest.

"After all of those 'smores, you still want to eat dinner?" He asked in surprise.

"Well, not right away," she sat up, letting her fingers trail from his chest further south. "You see, if we get in the shower, we could see what comes up."

"Well, like I stated earlier, I'm not exactly 20, anymore, but I'm sure some things could come up with a little persuasion," he teased.

"Oh, I can be _very _persuasive," she bent down and kissed him.

"Yes, you can be," he agreed wholeheartedly.

***CCC***

After a second round in the shower, they took a short nap before coming down to begin cooking dinner together. "Is filet okay with you?" Castle asked, pulling two steaks out of the refrigerator. "Kate?" He looked across the counter and saw her staring at her cell with a puzzled expression on her face. "Kate, what's wrong?"

"I got a text from Capt. Gates. She wants to know when we're coming back into the city. She says there's something that she needs to tell us."

**A/N #3: What does Capt. Gates need to tell Castle and Beckett? One more chapter to go and then an epilogue.**

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	14. Joyful News

**DISCLAIMER: No, I don't own 'Castle.'**

**SUMMARY: Kate and Castle prepare to return to the city where Capt. Gates has news for them. **

**A/N #1: This will be the last chapter, although there will be an epilogue.**

**A/N #2: I apologize for taking so long to post. I work as an event specialist for Sam's Club, which is a fancy title for the person who does the food demos. Because it's Easter Season, I've been working a lot more. **

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Chapter 14: Joyful News**

Castle was standing at the French doors looking out of his and Kate's bedroom. The ground was covered in a fresh layer of powdered snow. He looked over at the bed where Kate was still asleep, facing away from him. His heart still filled to bursting with love every time he looked at her. She was everything to him and thinking about what he'd done to her during those two months devastated him.

He found himself wondering just what it was that Capt. Gates wanted to talk to him and Kate about. After receiving the text from her the night before, Kate had texted the captain back, letting her know that she and Castle would be coming into the precinct sometime the next afternoon. She was just as anxious as he was to know what was so important that it couldn't wait a few more days. He hoped that it wasn't more bad news. He wasn't sure that he or Kate could handle any more negativity.

He smiled as he continued to watch her sleep. Although he was fond of reminding his wife that he was no longer 20 years old, the night before had been amazing. It had been one of those nights where they couldn't get enough of each other. Castle loved listening to Kate cry out his name in the throes of passion. It never failed to turn him on that he was the one who made her come so totally undone every time they came together so intimately. They had both finally succumbed to exhaustion sometime after three in the morning. Castle had only slept for a few hours before waking up shortly after six.

Kate opened her eyes and rolled over, instantly throwing her arm out to wrap around Castle, only to discover his side of the bed was empty. Not only empty, but empty and cold. She sat up and saw him standing by the doors. She slid out of bed, smiling at the delicious soreness in her thighs and between her legs. The night before had been wonderful and she had fallen asleep in Castle's arms sometime earlier that morning. She'd hoped that he'd sleep at last more than his usual few hours, but that didn't appear to have been the case.

Castle was still staring out at the white landscape when he heard Kate's feet softly padding across the floor before feeling her wrap her arms around him from behind. He smiled when he felt her press her lips into his back. He reached around and pulled her around to his side, where he kissed her softly. "Morning," he whispered against her lips.

"Morning," she whispered back. "You're up early."

"I couldn't sleep. I keep wondering what Iron Gates wants. I hope it's not more bad news. I'm not sure how much more bad news either of us can take."

"Castle, the tone of her text didn't indicate bad news. Are you sure that's all that you're worried about?"

"What do you mean?"

"Castle, what happened during those two days?" She felt his hold on her tighten. "Let me tell you something about those two months. I cried, I ranted, I raved, I didn't sleep for days at a time, at times I drank too much. But I also knew that you were out there somewhere and I was determined that I was going to find you and bring you home. There were people who kept insisting that you were dead, but I knew in my heart that you were just waiting for someone to find you. Just like I knew that you were going to find me."

"I kept losing hope, Kate," his voice was rough. "I knew that Tyson wanted to punish me and killing someone that I love would be the ultimate punishment. When we went into that warehouse and you were on that mattress and you were so still . . . I just knew that he'd succeeded. And I couldn't bear the thought that I'd lost you. I'm sorry."

"For what?" Instead of answering, he turned his attention back outside. "Rick? I can't help you if you don't talk to me. What is it that you're sorry for?"

"For two months, you stayed so strong. For two damn days, I could barely keep it together. I tried to stay strong, Kate. I really did," he brushed his hand over his eyes to keep his tears from spilling over.

"Rick, believe me, I wasn't always strong during those two months. There were so many nights when I went to sleep crying and I woke up crying. I would go on the morning news shows and beg someone, _anyone_, to come forward and tell me something. Rick," she reached down for his hand, "you're so much stronger that you think you are. If I didn't have you, I'm not sure I could get through what they did to me. You know when to give me space and you know when I'm about to fall apart. You're _always _there for me," she repeated. "Please let me be there for you. It's okay to fall apart sometimes."

She once again wrapped her arms around him, resting her head against his heart, listening to the steady thumping of his heart in her ear. She didn't know how to comfort him, to make him understand that he hadn't failed her. In fact, he'd undoubtedly saved her from a fate worse than death. She knew without a doubt that Tyson and Nieman would've continued torturing her until they eventually killed her. Like Rick had said earlier, it would've been the ultimate way to punish him.

"Let's take a shower and I'll make us breakfast before we head back into the city," she stepped up and brushed her lips against his. "Let's go find out what Gates wants."

"Yes to the shower, but I'll make breakfast," he bent his head down and kissed her, feeling her melt against him.

Almost two hours later, they were on the road heading back to the city, a thermos of hot coffee on the console between them. Castle glanced over at Kate, smiling at her as she softly sang along to a song on the radio. She was dressed in an old NYPD hoodie, her hair loosely tied into a ponytail.

Feeling him watching her, Kate focused her attention on him. "What?"

"I can't get over how cute you are," he smiled.

"Really, Castle? In what way exactly am I cute?"

"The way that you always sing along to the radio. It doesn't matter what station I have the radio on, you always know the words to almost every song."

"I was born at the end of the disco era to parents who came of age during the 60's," she smiled. "I grew up listening to a little bit of everything. And I've heard you singing along to a fair share of songs yourself, Castle. Not to mention our little duets in the shower," she gave him a knowing look.

"Hey, I happen to enjoy our little performances in the shower," he waggled his eyebrows which earned him an eye roll from his wife.

"Oh, I do, too," she bit her lip. "And the duets are fun, too."

He laughed before reaching over to squeeze her hand.

***CCC***

Kate and Castle stepped off of the elevator on the fourth floor of the 12th to a rousing round of applause from the other detectives in the bullpen. Castle slipped his arm around Kate, anchoring her to his side as he observed her. He knew how she disliked being the center of attention. "It's okay," he whispered to her. "They're just relieved to see you again."

She grabbed onto his hand as he steered her toward Capt. Gates' office and knocked on the closed door. "Come in!" The captain looked up when Castle and Kate walked into her office. "Thank you for coming in, Detective. You too, Mr. Castle. Please have a seat. How are you feeling, Kate?"

"Better," Kate answered. "I think I'm about ready to come back to work."

"I would like you to see the department psychologist before you come back on duty."

"Okay. I can call Dr. Burke when we return home."

"Yesterday afternoon, I received a phone call from the hospital informing me that Jerry Tyson died without ever regaining consciousness. His death was a direct result of the beating that he received at your hands, Mr. Castle. This has placed the D.A. in something of a quandary."

"Sir, he would've killed Kate—"

"I'm not finished, Mr. Castle," she held her hand out to silence the writer. "He also knows that without your assistance, Det. Beckett might not have been found alive. So, he's willing to not charge you with manslaughter in exchange for you completing 1000 hours of community service."

"One thousand hours?" Castle was outraged. "Tyson was a serial killer who had tortured me and the people that I loved for more than three years! I did society a favor!"

"Mr. Castle, your 1000 hours will constitute acting as a consultant to Det. Beckett and the 12th Precinct," Capt. Gates smiled at the two people sitting across from her desk, watching the realization dawn in both of their eyes.

"As a consultant?" He stuttered. "I'm . . . I'm . . . I'm being unbanned?"

"Mr. Castle, welcome back," the captain walked around her desk to shake Castle's hand only to suddenly find herself being fiercely embraced by him. "All right! All right! Okay!"

"A-ha!" Castle released the captain and turned to Kate, who was standing with a huge smile on her face and her arms held out to him. He lifted her off of the ground, feeling her arms wrap around his neck. "I'm back, Beckett!"

"Now, the two of you get out of here. Beckett, I expect to hear from Dr. Burke sometime in the next few days," she said as she watched them leave her office, closing the door behind them.

***CCC***

An hour later, Kate found herself tangled in Castle's arms, her naked body pressed against his, her nails scratching a circular pattern on his bare chest. She sighed at the feel his lips brushing against her collarbone, his nose nuzzling into her neck. "Promise me no more blood oaths with the mafia?"

"I promise that I'll never work a case on my own ever again," he began sliding down her body, his lips and fingers reawakening her senses all over again.

After they made love again, Castle held Kate against him while she slept, a small smile playing on her lips. The look on her face when she'd learned he was being allowed back was like sunshine after days of constant rain. He hadn't seen her that radiant since their makeshift honeymoon in Arizona. He was just happy to be back with her, where he knew he'd once again have her back. If he had his way, he'd never let her out of his sight ever again.

**A/N #3: Hopefully I'll have the epilogue up by early next week. **

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	15. Epilogue--Back Home Again

**DISCLAIMERS: Nope, I don't own anything.**

**A/N #1: This is an epilogue to wrap everything up neatly with a bow. It has an M rating.**

**A/N #2: My favorite stories to write are angst and reunions. Since most of this story was angst, I will close with a reunion.**

**A/N #3: I am trying to come up with an idea for an AU story, but I want to do something that hasn't been done to death. As usual, I'm open to suggestions.**

**Shadows in the Darkness**

**Epilogue: Back Home Again**

Castle leaned his head against the window in his first class seat, watching as the skyline of New York City got closer. He glanced at his watch, sighing when he saw the time. Thanks to bad weather in L.A., his flight home had been delayed by more than two hours. It was now close to 11 o'clock and he felt tired, gritty, and badly in need of a shower. But more than a shower, he was badly in need of seeing his wife. He ached to hold her in his arms.

Originally, the plan was for Kate to pick him up at the airport. But he'd called before his flight had taken off and had told her that he'd hire a car to bring him home. She'd argued, but he'd insisted that he didn't want her coming out so late when she'd have to be up early to go to work; really early if she got called for a body drop.

He'd been on the West Coast for the past eight days, traveling to various cities for his new Nikki Heat book. Los Angeles had been the final stop and now he was finally returning home, weary after the long week. He'd talked to Kate every night before going to bed, drinking in the sight of her on Skype.

"_So, are you all right?" He'd asked her a few nights before._

"_Except for missing a ruggedly handsome author, I'm fine. I've seen Dr. Burke and he's helping with the nightmares."_

"_But, you're still having them?" Concern was written all over his face._

"_Castle . . . Rick, I'm fine. I'm not denying that I'll be better once you're home, but I'm really okay. Get finished with this book tour and get your ass home."_

"_You've got it," his smile was huge._

***CCC***

Kate was pacing the baggage claim area, checking her watch every five minutes. She'd heard Castle's flight announced, so she knew that it was only a matter of a few minutes before he'd arrive to get his bags.

After talking to him earlier that afternoon, she'd called the car service to find out who was picking Rick up at the airport and had made arrangements for his driver to pick her up before going to the airport. She'd been waiting eight days to see him in person. She wasn't planning to wait any longer.

She pulled her long sleeves down over the still healing burn scars on her wrists. Returning to work right before Castle had left on his book signing tour had helped keep her ordeal out of her mind. It was only late at night with only Castle's empty pillow beside her that the dreams would return. She'd awakened both Martha and Alexis up with her bloodcurdling screams. Castle had told her that he'd spoke to both his mother and daughter.

"_Kate, I can cut the tour short. Gina understands that it's maybe too soon. I can complete the rest of the tour in the spring."_

"_Castle, I don't want you to do that. It's only a few days more."_

"_I'm just saying—"_

"_I know what you're saying, and it's very sweet," she smiled over the computer screen. "I love you and I'll see you on Tuesday."_

***CCC***

Walking behind a group of people heading to baggage claim, the only two things that Castle could think about right now was taking a shower and seeing his wife; possibly even combining the two. The thought made him smile. But the sight that greeted him when he was coming down the escalator made him smile even more. The sight of Kate was like seeing a rainbow after a summer rain. Her smile was breathtaking as he stepped off of the escalator and began threading his way through the throng of people, working his way toward her. She let a squeal of pure joy when she found herself in his arms and being lifted off of the floor, his arms holding her tightly. "Oh my god!" He spun her around, loving the sound of her laughter ringing out like bells. "I missed you so much!"

"That's why I'm here," she finally pulled away so that she could touch his face, his stubble rough against her palm. "I wasn't going to wait another minute to see you. I called the service and got Dave to pick me before coming here."

After eight long days, she sighed when his lips found hers, his kiss soft at first and then a little more demanding as his tongue sought hers. After kissing for a few minutes, he put her back on the floor, taking her hand in his and walking toward the baggage carousel. "Let's get my bags and then I'm taking you home."

"That sounds wonderful," she leaned her head against his shoulder as they waited for his bags.

After several minutes, he spotted his suitcase and his smaller tote. He pulled them both from the carousel, strapping the tote to his suitcase before once again taking Kate's hand and leading her out of the terminal, to his waiting Town Car, where Dave, one of his regular drivers was waiting for him. "Welcome home, Mr. Castle," Dave opened the back door before grabbing Castle's bags and taking them to the trunk.

"Thank you, Dave," Castle helped Kate into the car before slipping in after her, closing the door behind him. He then cupped his hand to her cheek, drawing her closer to him, his lips closing over hers once again. "I'm thinking round one in the shower, followed by a much slower round two in our bed. How does that sound to you, Mrs. Castle?"

"That sounds like a perfect plan to me, Mr. Beckett," she teased the way she always did when he called her 'Mrs. Castle.'

"How has work been?" He buckled his seat belt, watching her do the same as Dave got behind the wheel and put the car into gear. "Any interesting cases that I missed out on?"

"No, it's actually been surprisingly dull," she reached for his hand, unable to tear her eyes from him for even a second. "How was your trip?"

"Long," he rubbed her fingers. "The same old things. Same bookstores, same dinners, same fans. I missed you so much."

"I'll go with you on the next one."

"How many sessions have you had with Dr. Burke since I've been gone?"

"Three," she looked down at their joined hands. "It was only supposed to have been two, but one night it was really bad."

"I know. My mother told me."

"We can talk about all of that later. Right now, I just want to look at you."

Dave pulled up in front of the apartment building and immediately hopped out of the car to open the back door for his passengers. After unloading his luggage, Castle tipped him generously before grabbing the handle of his suitcase, slinging his tote over his shoulder and taking Kate's hand once again. He greeted the doorman, who held the door opened for them.

Inside of the elevator, he hit the button for the top floor as he felt Kate lean against his shoulder. He could feel the tiredness in her body. "You know, you didn't have to meet me at the airport. I can see how tired you are. I can _feel _how tired you are."

"I wasn't going to be away from you for one minute more than I had to. I'll get my second wind," she kissed his bicep as the elevator came to a stop on their floor. "Come on, let's go home."

When they reached the door to the loft, Castle pulled out his key and unlocked the door, walking into the quiet of his home with Kate at his side. "It's nice to be home," he closed the door and locked it behind him before turning toward her. "So nice to be home," he bent his head and kissed her once again, smiling when he heard her moan into his mouth. "I'm going to just leave the bags in my office and unpack tomorrow. Because right now I really need a shower and I want you in that shower with me."

"Okay," she smiled, lacing her fingers in his and guiding him through the living room to his office, where he stashed his bags in a corner by his desk. After his bags were put away, she led him through their bedroom and into the bathroom. She closed the door before working on removing his clothes, smiling at him when she saw that he was just standing in place gawking at her. "Castle, are you just going to stand there or what?"

"Huh?" He looked confused until he realized that he was the only one getting naked. "Oh," he reached for the hem of her shirt, lifting it up and over her head before reaching for the button on her jeans. She sat down on the toilet seat and watched him struggle with her boots, making a show at how difficult they were to remove. "Come on, Castle, use your muscles!"

"I'd rather use my muscles for other things," he finally succeeded in getting her boots off before reaching up and tugging her jeans down her beautifully toned, endless legs. He took a deep breath when he felt himself instantly hardening at the sight. "Fuck, I love your legs."

"Are you all right there, cowboy?" She stood up, slipping her hand into the waistband of his slacks, yanking him nearer to her. "I can see that you missed me," she smirked, looking down at the obvious bulge in his pants. "Let's take a shower and I'll take care of that for you."

Half an hour later, Kate climbed naked and damp into the middle of their bed, smiling at the sight of Castle crawling after her. They'd taken a nice long shower together where she had shown him just how much she'd missed him after which he'd told her that he definitely owed her.

The look in his eyes was predatory as he grabbed one of her ankles and pulled her so that she was lying flat in the middle of the mattress. He then moved up so that he was cradled in the 'v' of her legs. He brushed her damp hair from her face before kissing her, his tongue stroking against hers. Kate slipped her arms around his shoulders, her nails lightly scratching his upper back.

"I missed you, Kate. I missed you so, so much," he punctuated each word with a kiss.

"I missed you too, Rick," she softly stroked his face. "I love you. I want you so much." She closed her eyes and sighed when his lips moved to her neck, nibbling at the sensitive skin behind her ear. "Castle," she whispered his name, feeling him slowly begin to descend down her body.

Castle took his time re-familiarizing himself with every inch of his wife's body. He groaned when he felt her fingers trailing down his back to his ass, his groan getting louder when she squeezed him. He moved back up, claiming her lips with his once again. He reached around and removed her hands from his ass, pinning them over her head while he continued ravishing her mouth.

Kate bucked her hips up against him, seeking friction for the ache between her legs. She'd been incredibly aroused all day, longing for this moment with Castle. And while she appreciated his extreme tenderness, at the moment she just wanted to come and come hard. "Castle, please," she arched against him once again.

Finally he began blazing a trail down her body, hearing her keening cry when he took one hardened nipple into his mouth, laving it with his tongue before moving to the other one. After ministering to her breasts for several minutes, he moved on, leaving a wet trail down her abdomen with his tongue. After what seemed to be an eternity, Kate felt Castle's hand on the inside of her thigh, opening her up for his questing mouth and fingers. "You are so wet," he whispered, slowly inserting a finger into her and instantly feeling her clamp down around him.

"I've been in this state all day, Castle," she groaned when he added a second finger, angling them up and finding her g-spot. "Oh, yes!" She screamed out, her thighs starting to tremble. "A little more, Rick. I'm almost there."

He flicked his tongue over her clit, getting an instant reaction from Kate. Knowing how close she was, he began licking at her more rapidly, moving his fingers in and out of her, as she screamed and thrashed under him. Suddenly, he felt her fingers in his hair, holding him tighter to her wet core as she came hard under his lips, tongue and fingers. He slowly pulled his fingers from her, brushing up over her hardened nub and feeling her tremble under him. She relaxed her hands from his hair as she continued to feel aftershocks moving through her far from satiated body.

Castle moved his way back up her body, softly kissing her along the way. When he was once again hovering over her, Kate smiled at him before hooking her ankle over his calf and expertly rolling them so that she was now on top of him. She reached down for him, slowing stroking him into full hardness. Guiding him to her entrance, they both groaned when she slowly sank down onto his length. She took his hands and guided them to her breasts, whimpering when he rolled her nipples between his thumb and forefinger.

Kate began to move up and down, moving all the way up and then sinking back down again, her clit making contact with his pelvic bone with every thrust. She threw her head back and continued moving on him, her movements becoming choppier as she neared orgasm again.

Castle pulled her down onto his chest, his mouth crushing against hers, swallowing her cry of pleasure when he felt her muscles tighten around him. Before she had a chance to come down from her peak, he rolled them again, hooking her ankles over his forearms as he pounded into her hard, his own release rapidly approaching.

He pressed his thumb against her clit, rubbing hard against the swollen flesh while Kate continued to scream out his name along with several interesting epithets. "Rick, are you close?" She finally managed to ask. "Because I can't take much more. Please, I need for you to come."

This time she pulled him down so that she could kiss him, their movements sloppy. He released her legs which allowed her to wrap them around his waist, allowing him to penetrate deeper. "I love you," he whispered against her lips. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too."

He plunged into her once more before emptying himself deep inside of her with a loud groan of pleasure. He kissed Kate's lips, cheek, and collarbone before moving off of her and rolling onto his back. Seconds later, Kate moved so that she was resting on his chest, her hand stroking his bare chest. "Best reunion sex ever," she smiled at his description.

"We always have great reunion sex," she reminded him. "You've spoiled me, Castle."

"How so?" His voice was drowsy.

"My toys just don't do the trick, anymore," she smiled as she looked up at him with a sleepy smile.

"Did you ever use your toys to fantasize that it was me before we got together?"

"I'll never tell," she laughed when she felt his fingers tickling her side. "Seriously, Rick," she raised her head up, "I really missed you. Maybe it was too soon for you to go away and that's okay," she quickly added. "Dr. Burke told me that I'll get my self-reliance back. He said it's just going to take some time. He said that until then we'll just have to live with the nightmares and the PTSD attacks."

"Hey," his voice was soft in the quiet of their bedroom, "we got through it before, Kate. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. Until then, I'll take care of you just like you took care of me when I came back. We're partners, remember?"

"In crime and in life," she softly kissed him. "Welcome home, babe."

"Does this mean you'll admit that you used to fantasize about me using your favorite toy? I mean, I have intimate knowledge of which one is your favorite," he waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Not gonna happen, babe," she lightly smacked his chest, delighting in his laughter when she put her head back down on his chest, feeling his arm securely tighten around her shoulders as she finally dozed off, happy to have him back home safe where he belonged.

**A/N #3: I apologize for taking so long. I've been stressed and when I get stressed, I have trouble writing.**

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